UX (User eXperience) must be taken into account right from the design stage. Today, it is inconceivable for software publishers to offer companies digital solutions that do not take into account the end-user’s uses and working conditions. User experience is therefore a major criterion in the choice and adoption of software by end-users. Failure to take this into account could hinder the digital transition of an entire company, and on a larger scale could jeopardize the security of sensitive data held not only by the company itself, but also by all its partners and customers.
What is user experience ?
User experience or UX design is concerned with the quality of the experience a person has when interacting with a system, service or product, whether digital or not.
“UX Design is a methodical, iterative, human-centered design process aimed at shaping user experiences.”
Carine Lallemand (Ph.D.) has been a researcher in psychology and UX design at the University of Luxembourg since 2015.
From a software point of view, user experience covers the way in which the software is perceived and felt by the user. It can be defined according to a number of criteria, such as :
- Ergonomics
- Simplicity
- Speed
- Usability
- Legibility
- Mobility
- Agility
- The look and feel
etc…
UX design must encourage users to relive the experience, reuse the software and recommend it. User expectations and behaviors must therefore be taken into account in software design, with the aim of satisfying both the functional design – very often considered a secondary need – and the primary need met by the software.
The role of UX in data cybersecurity
Securing the processing, sharing and storage of files requires highly complex development, encryption and other technological innovations. For end-users, most of whom are non-technophiles, the lack of understanding and the difficulty of mastering these systems can prevent them from using a data security solution on a daily basis, which represents a major cyber risk for the company. The latter will find ways of circumventing the use of the solution, by using unsecured collaborative tools such as Dropbox. By taking UX into account right from the design stage of cybersecurity software, the vendor can be sure that its solution will fit seamlessly into end-users’ working practices. As a result, it becomes easier for companies to move towards total digitization of their services, by adopting secure cloud storage and collaborative solutions without any fear of facing resistance from employees.
UX puts people back at the heart of technological development for cybersecurity solutions
UX process: The case of PARSEC
Parsec is a technological innovation designed in ZeroTrust mode. Technically, the solution incorporates 5 essential security paradigms:
- Zero Trust
- Zero Knowledge ” dissemination,
- the User-centered Security Model
- micro-segmentation of data
- Write Once Read Many (WORM)
To achieve an optimal user experience, we relied on the creation process formalized by Jesse James Garrett in his book“The Elements of User Experience“, in which he defines five key stages in this process:
- Strategy: defining users’ needs and the publisher’s product and business objectives. To define user needs and expectations, we used the persona marketing method, which consists of creating a semi-real representation of the ideal end-user based on research and interviews. In terms of product and business objectives, our goal for Parsec has always been above all to create an ultra-secure solution that guarantees 100% security when sharing and storing data in the public or private cloud. For us, this has been a major technical challenge in IT innovation.
- Scope: defining the product’s functional and content requirements, which create added value. As Parsec is a data security solution, the challenge was to reconcile technical security features with ease of use for the user.
- Structure: Organizing and prioritizing information to help users achieve their objectives when using the product.
- The skeleton: Design the interface prototypes (zonings, wireframes) that present the different contents and locations of each element.
- The surface: Design the UI (User Interface), which is the graphic model.
Once this process was complete, we naturally tested the software in real-life scenarios and wireframes, including real users (potential customers), whose opinions and suggestions enabled us to continuously improve the Parsec user experience.
TheUX Design process thus creates an ergonomic and intuitive framework for optimal use of the solution. Of course, UX must evolve throughout the life of the product, and adapt as best as possible to the reality of the user.
We invite you to download and install Parsec, and tell us about your own user experience!
