Team for Research in
Ubiquitous Secure Technology

Citation
John Chuang. "I Think, Therefore I Am: Usability and Security of Authentication Using Brainwaves". Talk or presentation, 9, October, 2013.

Abstract
With the embedding of EEG (electro-encephalography) sensors in wireless headsets and other consumer electronics, authenticating users based on their brainwave signals has become a realistic possibility. We undertake an experimental study of the usability and performance of user authentication using consumer-grade EEG sensor technology. By choosing custom tasks and custom acceptance thresholds for each subject, we can achieve 99% authentication accuracy using single-channel EEG signals, which is on par with previous research employing multi- channel EEG signals using clinical-grade devices. In addition to the usability improvement offered by the single-channel dry-contact EEG sensor, we also study the usability of different classes of mental tasks. We find that subjects have little difficulty recalling chosen "pass-thoughts" (e.g., their previously selected song to sing in their mind). They also have different preferences for tasks based on the perceived difficulty and enjoyability of the tasks. These results can inform the design of authentication systems that guide users in choosing tasks that are both usable and secure.

Electronic downloads

• HTML

  John Chuang. <a
  href="http://www.truststc.org/pubs/922.html"
  ><i>I Think, Therefore I Am: Usability and Security
  of Authentication Using Brainwaves</i></a>, Talk
  or presentation,  9, October, 2013.

• Plain text

  John Chuang. "I Think, Therefore I Am: Usability and
  Security of Authentication Using Brainwaves". Talk or
  presentation,  9, October, 2013.

• BibTeX

  @presentation{Chuang13_IThinkThereforeIAmUsabilitySecurityOfAuthentication,
      author = {John Chuang},
      title = {I Think, Therefore I Am: Usability and Security of
                Authentication Using Brainwaves},
      day = {9},
      month = {October},
      year = {2013},
      abstract = {With the embedding of EEG
                (electro-encephalography) sensors in wireless
                headsets and other consumer electronics,
                authenticating users based on their brainwave
                signals has become a realistic possibility. We
                undertake an experimental study of the usability
                and performance of user authentication using
                consumer-grade EEG sensor technology. By choosing
                custom tasks and custom acceptance thresholds for
                each subject, we can achieve 99% authentication
                accuracy using single-channel EEG signals, which
                is on par with previous research employing multi-
                channel EEG signals using clinical-grade devices.
                In addition to the usability improvement offered
                by the single-channel dry-contact EEG sensor, we
                also study the usability of different classes of
                mental tasks. We find that subjects have little
                difficulty recalling chosen "pass-thoughts" (e.g.,
                their previously selected song to sing in their
                mind). They also have different preferences for
                tasks based on the perceived difficulty and
                enjoyability of the tasks. These results can
                inform the design of authentication systems that
                guide users in choosing tasks that are both usable
                and secure.},
      URL = {http://www.truststc.org/pubs/922.html}
  }
  

Posted by Carolyn Winter on 18 Nov 2013.
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