Thread: Usability of cryptographic APIs (+ Study Invitation)

Hello,

I hope it is ok to post this here:

I am researching the usability of cryptographic APIs at Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences. For this purpose I want to compare the usability of different Java APIs supporting digital signatures. Bad usability of cryptographic APIs leads to programming mistakes which then leads to insecure code.

I am very interested in your opinions about API usability, maybe also sharing some bad examples. But even more important, I'm looking for participants to take part in my online study to investigate the usability of cryptographic APIs.

I prepared an online editor where you will be presented with a programming task. This task should be solved using a randomly assigned API and should take you about 90 minutes. Only basic Java skills are required.

If you want to take part in my research, please visit the following page: research.azeier.de

By participating, you would help me understand different problems programmers are facing when using cryptographic APIs. These insights are then used to create more usable APIs.

I would like to thank you in advance for supporting the study and making a valuable contribution to my research.

If you encounter any technical difficulties, please let me know.

EDIT: We added an incentive for you to take part in the study. All participants have the chance to win one of three 100€ voucher for amazon. For this purpose you will have to enter you E-Mail address in the survey after finishing the tasks. This address will only be used to send you the voucher in case you've won and will be deleted afterwards.