User interface, security, and "simplicity"
Ed Gerck
edgerck at nma.com
Sun May 4 21:24:00 EDT 2008
Ian G wrote: (on Kerckhoffs's rules)
> =====================
> 6. Finally, it is necessary, given the circumstances that command its
> application, that the system be easy to use, requiring neither mental
> strain nor the knowledge of a long series of rules to observe.
> =====================
> ...
> PS: Although his 6th is arguably the most important
Yes. Usability should be the #1 property of a secure system.
Conventional security thinking says that usability and security are
like a seesaw; if usability goes up, security must go down, and
vice-versa. This apparent antinomy actually works as a synergy: with
more usability in a secure system, security increases. With less
usability in a secure system, security decreases. A secure system that
is not usable will be left aside by users.
Cheers,
Ed Gerck
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