Abstract
This paper studies the effect of individual differences on user performance related to text-recognition CAPTCHA challenges. In particular, a text-recognition CAPTCHA mechanism was deployed in a three-month user study to investigate the effect of individuals’ different cognitive processing abilities, targeting on speed of processing, controlled attention and working memory capacity toward efficiency and effectiveness with regard to different levels of complexity in text-recognition CAPTCHA tasks. A total of 107 users interacted with CAPTCHA challenges between September and November 2012 indicating that the usability of CAPTCHA mechanisms may be supported by personalization techniques based on individual differences in cognitive processing.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
von Ahn, L., Blum, M., Langford, J.: Telling Humans and Computers Apart Automatically. Communications of the ACM 47, 56–60 (2004)
von Ahn, L., Blum, M., Hopper, N.J., Langford, J.: CAPTCHA: Using hard AI problems for security. In: Biham, E. (ed.) EUROCRYPT 2003. LNCS, vol. 2656, pp. 294–311. Springer, Heidelberg (2003)
Bursztein, E., Bethard, S., Fabry, C., Mitchell, J.C., Jurafsky, D.: How Good are Humans at Solving CAPTCHAs? A Large Scale Evaluation. In: IEEE Symposium on Security and Privacy, pp. 399–413. IEEE Computer Society, Washington, DC (2010)
von Ahn, L., Maurer, B., McMillen, C., Abraham, D., Blum, M.: reCAPTCHA: Human-Based Character Recognition via Web Security Measures. Science 321(5895), 1465–1468 (2008)
Pogue, D.: Time to Kill OffCaptchas - How the Bot-proofing of the Internet is Bringing Humans Down. Scientific American (2012)
Yan, J., El Ahmad, A.S.: A Low-cost Attack on a Microsoft CAPTCHA. In: 15th ACM International Conference on Computer and Communications Security, pp. 543–554. ACM Press, New York (2008)
Baecher, P., Büscher, N., Fischlin, M., Milde, B.: Breaking reCAPTCHA: A Holistic Approach via Shape Recognition. In: Camenisch, J., Fischer-Hübner, S., Murayama, Y., Portmann, A., Rieder, C. (eds.) SEC 2011. IFIP AICT, vol. 354, pp. 56–67. Springer, Heidelberg (2011)
Yan, J., El Ahmad, A.S.: Usability of CAPTCHAs or Usability Issues in CAPTCHA Design. In: ACM International Symposium on Usable Security and Privacy, pp. 44–52. ACM Press, New York (2008)
Fidas, C., Voyiatzis, A., Avouris, N.: On the Necessity of User-friendly CAPTCHA. In: ACM International Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, pp. 2623–2626. ACM Press, New York (2011)
Brusilovsky, P., Kobsa, A., Nejdl, W.: The Adaptive Web: Methods and Strategies of Web Personalization. Springer, Heidelberg (2007)
Germanakos, P., Tsianos, N., Lekkas, Z., Mourlas, C., Belk, M., Samaras, G.: Towards an Adaptive and Personalized Web Interaction using Human Factors. In: Angelides, M., Mylonas, P., Wallace, M. (eds.) Advances in Semantic Media Adaptation and Personalization, pp. 247–282. Taylor & Francis (2009)
Triantafillou, E., Pomportsis, A., Demetriadis, S., Georgiadou, E.: The Value of Adaptivity based on Cognitive Style: an Empirical Study. Educational Technology 35, 95–106 (2004)
Graf, S.: Kinshuk: Advanced Adaptivity in Learning Management Systems by Considering Learning Styles. In: International Workshop on Social and Personal Computing for Web-Supported Learning Communities, pp. 235–238 (2009)
Riding, R.: Cognitive Style Analysis - Research Administration. Learning and Training Technology (2001)
Witkin, H.A., Moore, C.A., Goodenough, D.R., Cox, P.W.: Field-dependent and field-independent Cognitive Styles and their Educational Implications. Review of Educational Research 47, 1–64 (1977)
Demetriou, A., Spanoudis, G., Shayer, S., Mouyi, A., Kazi, S., Platsidou, M.: Cycles in Speed-Working Memory-G Relations: Towards a Developmental-Differential Theory of the Mind. Intelligence 41, 34–50 (2013)
Hunt, E.B.: Human Intelligence. Cambridge University Press, New York (2011)
Demetriou, A., Spanoudis, G., Mouyi, A.: Educating the Developing Mind: Towards an Overarching Paradigm. Educational Psychology Review 23(4), 601–663 (2011)
MacLeod, C.M.: Half a Century of Research on the Stroop Effect: An Integrative review. Psychological Bulletin 109, 163–203 (1991)
Posner, M.I., Raicle, M.E.: Images of Mind. Scientific American Library, New York (1997)
Stroop, J.R.: Studies of Interference in Serial Verbal Reactions. Experimental Psychology 18, 643–662 (1935)
Baddeley, A.: Working Memory: Theories, Models, and Controversies. Annual Review of Psychology 63, 1–29 (2012)
Baddeley, A.: Working Memory. Science 255(5044), 556–559 (1992)
Conway, A.R.A., Cowan, N., Bunting, M.F., Therriault, D.J., Minkoff, S.R.: A Latent Variable Analysis of Working Memory Capacity, Short-term Memory Capacity, Processing Speed, and General Fluid Intelligence. Intelligence 30, 163–183 (2002)
Shipstead, Z., Broadway, J.: Individual Differences in Working Memory Capacity and the Stroop Effect: Do High Spans Block the Words? Learning and Individual Differences (in press)
Demetriou, A., Christou, C., Spanoudis, G., Platsidou, M.: The Development of Mental Processing: Efficiency, Working Memory and Thinking. Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development 67(1) (2002)
Unsworth, N., Spillers, G.: Working Memory Capacity: Attention Control, Secondary Memory, or Both? A Direct Test of the Dual-component Model. Memory and Language 62, 392–406 (2010)
Cowan, N.: The Magical Mystery Four: How is Working Memory Capacity Limited, and Why? Current Directions in Psychological Science 19(1), 51–57 (2010)
Klingberg, T.: The Overflowing Brain: Information Overload and the Limits of Working Memory. Oxford University Press, New York (2009)
Bursztein, E., Martin, M., Mitchell, J.: Text-based CAPTCHA Strengths and Weaknesses. In: 18th ACM International Conference on Computer and Communications Security, pp. 125–138. ACM Press, New York (2011)
Cook, T., Campbell, D.: Quasi-experimentation: Design and Analysis Issues for Field Settings. Houghton Mifflin Company, Boston (1979)
Brewer, M.: Research Design and Issues of Validity. In: Reis, H., Judd, C. (eds.) Handbook of Research Methods in Social and Personality Psychology, pp. 3–16. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge (2000)
Belk, M., Fidas, C., Germanakos, P., Samaras, G.: Do Cognitive Styles of Users Affect Preference and Performance Related to CAPTCHA Challenges? In: ACM International Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems, pp. 1487–1492. ACM Press, New York (2012)
Holzinger, A., Lugmayr, A., Bogner, M.S.: Security and Usability Workshop. In: IEEE International Conference on Availability, Reliability and Security. IEEE Computing Society, Washington, DC (2009)
Belk, M., Germanakos, P., Fidas, C., Spanoudis, G., Samaras, G.: Studying the Effect of Human Cognition on Text- and Image-recognition CAPTCHA Mechanisms. In: International Conference on Human-Computer Interaction - HCI International. LNCS, Springer, Heidelberg (in press, 2013)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2013 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
About this paper
Cite this paper
Belk, M., Germanakos, P., Fidas, C., Holzinger, A., Samaras, G. (2013). Towards the Personalization of CAPTCHA Mechanisms Based on Individual Differences in Cognitive Processing. In: Holzinger, A., Ziefle, M., Hitz, M., Debevc, M. (eds) Human Factors in Computing and Informatics. SouthCHI 2013. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 7946. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-39062-3_26
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-39062-3_26
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Print ISBN: 978-3-642-39061-6
Online ISBN: 978-3-642-39062-3
eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)