Sara Hahn | UCS

Current Topics in Usable Security Research

Wed, 22 Apr 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Studierende, die die Veranstaltung belegen möchten, müssen am ersten Termin teilnehmen.

Students who wish to take the course must attend the first session.

Topic

In this seminar, students will learn how to conduct and evaluate a systematic literature analysis in the field of Usable Security and Privacy.
They will investigate how different age groups are supported in dealing with cyber security and privacy in everyday life. Tools and frameworks for literature analysis, such as PRISMA, will be introduced. Furthermore, students will learn to critically reflect on their findings and derive implications for research.
After completing this seminar, students will be able to conduct systematic literature analyses. Based on this, they will be able to situate their findings within related and current research, identify gaps and challenges, and propose research implications and opportunities for improvement.

Formalia

The language of the seminar is English.
Further formalities will be announced in the first session (15.04.2026).
Assessment components:
- Graded scientific paper (10–20 pages)
- Graded presentation (45–60 minutes)
- The final grade consists of 70% for the written paper and 30% for the presentation.

Initial Literature and Links

Garfinkel, Simson, and Heather Richter Lipford. “Usable security: History, themes, and challenges.” Synthesis Lectures on Information Security, Privacy, and Trust 5.2 (2014).
Symposium On Usable Privacy and Security (ab 2015)
Conference Scraper - UCS

Teacher

Sara Hahn

PIONEER project presents current investigations and publications

Mon, 25 Aug 2025 00:00:00 +0000

The ATHENE research project PIONEER was featured at the 29th International Conference Information Visualisation held on August 07, 2025 in Darmstadt. The conference brought together leading experts from academia and research institutions to discuss the latest developments in information visualisation, machine learning, and data science.

During the event, Sara Hahn presented the latest research investigations and publications on PIONEER’s innovative Digital Privacy Companion. In her talk, Sara Hahn provided a comprehensive overview of the project’s theoretical foundations and research methodology, while also showcasing current investigations, findings, and recent publications.

The PIONEER project is part of ATHENE’s mission to advance cybersecurity and privacy research with practical solutions that can be transferred into real-world applications.

Sara Hahn presenting the poster on Day 2 of the IV2025 Conference. Image © IV2025

PIONEER project presents current results

Thu, 21 Nov 2024 00:00:00 +0000

UCS recently participated in the ATHENE-Conference on Cognitive Security, held on November 19, 2024, at the historic Jügelhaus in Frankfurt am Main. The event gathered experts from academia, media, and politics to address the pressing challenges posed by cognitive attacks in the digital age. In addition to interesting talks and an insightful panel discussion, several projects were presented in the demo sessions.

Sara Hahn had the opportunity to present the ATHENE project PIONEER’s mobile prototype during the demo sessions with her project colleagues from the TU Darmstadt. The conference guests could explore the prototype’s features, such as lessons and quizzes about privacy, or compare applications regarding their privacy friendliness.

Within our project PIONEER, we strive to empower users in their digital sovereignty by providing them with the necessary knowledge and motivating them to acquire and apply competencies in their everyday digital lives.

How to Respect Bystanders' Privacy in Smart Homes - A Co-Creation Study

Wed, 16 Oct 2024 05:01:40 +0000

Abstract

As technology advances, homes become more digitalized and evolve into smart homes. Bystanders, e.g. guests in smart homes, are often unaware of the smart home devices and the associated privacy risks that make them especially vulnerable. However, so far there is limited research on how the guests can be made aware of smart home devices in the household and how their resulting privacy preferences can be addressed while respecting the smart home owners’ preferences as well. To close this gap, we conducted three co-creation workshops with ten participants (N=10) developing various design solutions. Through a thematic analysis of our data, we identified design solutions for smart home devices and beyond, like higher-level applications for regulating privacy and inherent responsibility. We recommend a multi-modal approach focusing not only on the design of the devices but also on the higher-level management of privacy in smart homes.