Ahsan Imran

About

Ahsan completed a Master’s student in Computer Science in August 2015.

Thesis Abstract

According to a large MediaSmarts survey, 99 percent of Canadian children aged 8-15 are online. We already have a good number of security measures for adults but can those measures keep children secure as well? As a starting point, we explore the subject of user authentication for children.

We conducted two studies on three graphical password schemes (Objects, Image and Words PassTiles), one with adults and one with children. We analyse the data collected from these 50 participants to compare their performance and preferences. Although outperformed by the adults, children performed best with Objects PassTiles where they recognized images of distinct objects from among decoys. Adults and children both have similar opinions, including a preference for graphical passwords over their existing password schemes. We conclude the thesis with 5 recommendations based on our experiences.

Research Interests

Android Smartphone security and usability

Publications

Articles

• Hala Assal, Ahsan Imran, and Sonia Chiasson. [Journal Article] An exploration of graphical password authentication for children. International Journal of Child-Computer Interaction, Elsevier, 2018.
  [Bibtex]

  @article{assal2018-gpkids-ijcci,
  title = {[Journal Article] An exploration of graphical password authentication for children},
  journal = {International Journal of Child-Computer Interaction, Elsevier},
  pages = {},
  year = {2018},
  author = {Hala Assal AND Ahsan Imran AND Sonia Chiasson},
  doi={10.1016/j.ijcci.2018.06.003},
  url={https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijcci.2018.06.003},
  note = {Articles}
  }

Conference Papers

• Hala Assal, Stephanie Hurtado, Ahsan Imran, and Sonia Chiasson. [Paper] What’s the deal with privacy apps? A comprehensive exploration of user perception and usability. In Mobile and Ubiquitous Multimedia (MUM). ACM, 2015.
  [Bibtex]

  @INPROCEEDINGS{assal2015mobileprivacy-mum,
  author = {Assal, Hala AND Hurtado, Stephanie AND Imran, Ahsan AND Chiasson, Sonia},
  title = {[Paper] What's the deal with privacy apps? A comprehensive exploration of user perception and usability},
  booktitle = {Mobile and Ubiquitous Multimedia (MUM)},
  year = {2015},
  doi = {http://dx.doi.org/10.1145/2836041.2836044},
  note = {Conference Papers},
  organization = {ACM}
  }

Posters and Others

• Stephanie Hurtado, Ahsan Imran, and Sonia Chiasson. [Poster] A usability study of ChatSecure. CRA-W Graduate Cohort Workshop, 2014.
  [Bibtex]

  @MISC{hurtado2014chatsecure-craw,
  author = {Stephanie Hurtado AND Ahsan Imran AND Sonia Chiasson},
  title = {[Poster] A usability study of ChatSecure},
  howpublished = {CRA-W Graduate Cohort Workshop},
  year = {2014},
  note = {Posters and Others}
  }

Technical Reports

• Hala Assal, Ahsan Imran, and Sonia Chiasson. [Tech report] An Exploration of Graphical Password Authentication for Children. Technical Report arXiv:1610.09743, School of Computer Science, Carleton University, 2016.
  [Bibtex]

  @TECHREPORT{assal2016-kidgp-tr,
  author = {Hala Assal AND Ahsan Imran AND Sonia Chiasson},
  title = {[Tech report] An Exploration of Graphical Password Authentication for Children},
  institution = {School of Computer Science, Carleton University},
  year = {2016},
  number = {arXiv:1610.09743},
  note = {Technical Reports}
  }

Theses

• Ahsan Imran. [Thesis] A comparison of password authentication between children and adults. Master’s thesis, School of Computer Science, Carleton University, 2015.
  [Bibtex]

  @MASTERSTHESIS{imran2015thesis-carleton,
  author = {Ahsan Imran},
  title = {[Thesis] A comparison of password authentication between children and adults},
  school = {School of Computer Science, Carleton University},
  year = {2015},
  note = {Theses}
  }