EPISODE 35: Can Cybersecurity Teams Flex Their Creativity To Keep Us All Safe?

Compromising Positions - A Cyber Security Podcast

This Episode we are joined by Martina Mitz, a UX Psychologist, Strategist and Designer.

In this episode “Can Cybersecurity Teams Flex Their Creativity To Keep Us All Safe?”, we’re going to talk about the natural intersection between psychology, UX and Cybersecurity, and the importance of understanding human behaviour to create user-centric digital interfaces, that people will not only want to interact with, but will also keep them safe.

We’ll also discuss the importance of bridging the gap between the Cybersecurity and UX teams, building trust between two teams that are often perceived to be at odds with each other, or may not interact at all!

And finally whether or not Cybersecurity could or maybe even should be considered a creative pursuit.

Key Takeaways:

The Intersection of Psychology and UX Design: Martina explains how her background in clinical psychology enhances her approach to UX design. She highlights the importance of understanding human behaviour to create user-friendly and secure digital interfaces.

Bridging the Gap Between Cybersecurity and UX: We delve into the often-overlooked collaboration between cybersecurity teams and UX designers. Martina emphasizes the need for cybersecurity professionals to engage with UX teams to better understand user behaviour and create more effective security measures.

Overcoming Fear and Building Trust: Martina discusses the common fear and mistrust between cybersecurity teams and other departments. She provides strategies to foster better communication and collaboration, ensuring security measures are user-centric and effective.

The Importance of User Research in Security: The episode highlights how user research can identify potential security risks and user vulnerabilities. Martina shares examples of how understanding user needs and behaviors can lead to more robust security solutions.

Creativity and Innovation in Cybersecurity: Martina challenges the stereotype that cybersecurity is purely analytical and devoid of creativity. She argues that solving security challenges often requires innovative thinking and a deep understanding of human psychology.

Links to everything we discussed in this episode can be found in the show notes and if you liked the show, please do leave us a review.

Follow us on all good podcasting platforms and via our YouTube channel, and don't forget to share on LinkedIn and in your teams.

It really helps us spread the word and get high-quality guests, on future episodes.

We hope you enjoyed this episode - See you next time, keep secure, and don’t forget to ask yourself, ‘Am I the compromising position here?’

Keywords: cybersecurity, UX, psychology, UR, behaviour, creativity, design, trust, accessibility

SHOW NOTES

A version of Martina’s talk that Lianne and Jeff saw- Experience Mapping: Why, How and What

ABOUT MARTINA MITZ

Martina started as a self-taught Web Designer in 1999. From the very beginning her approach was user-centered despite not being familiar with the now-common phrase of ‘User Experience’. In 2007 she finalized her (Diploma-) study in Psychology and started working in the field of clinical Psychology. It was at this point that Martina’s academic background and her passion joined and she started a career as UX Designer, being called “Conceptioner” at first. Since then Martina has not only contributed to the digital and service ecosystems of many recognizable companies (e.g. eBay, PayPal, Emirates Airlines, Volkswagen, Telekom and many more), but she also helped selected Start-ups in Europe, by forming and driving their Research, as well as contributing to their product or service strategy and definition.

LINKS FOR MARTINA MITZ

Martina’s LinkedIn

Martina’s Website

Martina’s Youtube