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Thesis
Designing for trust: building mental models of security through interface design
Master of Science (M.S.), Drexel University
Jun 2025
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17918/00011012
Abstract
As phishing attacks grow increasingly convincing in their design, victims see losses amounting to $16 billion in total. While technical solutions like large language models and URL scanners boast high accuracy in lab settings, they often fail to support real-world user decision-making. Educational efforts also tend to lack retention and transferability. This thesis addresses that gap by exploring how interface design can proactively shape users' mental models of website security. Using a mixed-methods approach, the study finds that most users rely heavily on surface-level visual cues when making trust decisions. However, users with more robust mental models of security were better equipped to identify phishing attempts. These findings suggest that more research is needed to understand the role interface design holds as an educational tool in shaping mental models of security. Rather than treat UI as a passive layer, this research argues for its role in shaping active user understanding and improving everyday security behavior.
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Details
- Title
- Designing for trust
- Creators
- Preeti Vijendra Shenoy
- Contributors
- Troy Finamore (Advisor)
- Awarding Institution
- Drexel University
- Degree Awarded
- Master of Science (M.S.)
- Publisher
- Drexel University; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Number of pages
- viii, 111 pages
- Resource Type
- Thesis
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Digital Media; Drexel University; Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts and Design
- Other Identifier
- 991022059037504721