Comparative Analysis of Interface Usability for Cybersecurity Applications

Abstract

In cybersecurity, understanding the technologies and the best ways to interface with them is paramount for staying ahead of growing cyberthreats. Developers of cybersecurity software will benefit greatly from a greater understanding of how users prefer to interact with cybersecurity technology. In the modern world, two primary interface methods are currently used: the command-line interface (CLI) and the graphical user interface (GUI). This study is a survey and introspective into what benefits and drawbacks that each method has when in the hands of users who do not have a comprehensive background in cybersecurity. Untrained individuals showed proficiency when working with GUI systems, showing that developing modern cybersecurity systems with GUIs would improve ease of use for such individuals. Additionally, the CLI was favorable for more complex operations but was difficult for users who were not accustomed to the CLI.