International Journal of

ADVANCED AND APPLIED SCIENCES

EISSN: 2313-3724, Print ISSN: 2313-626X

Frequency: 12
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 Volume 12, Issue 6 (June 2025), Pages: 1-12

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 Original Research Paper

Usability and security in online authentication systems

 Author(s): 

 Randa Allafi, Abdulbasit A. Darem *

 Affiliation(s):

 Department of Computer Science, College of Science, Northern Border University, Arar, Saudi Arabia

 Full text

    Full Text - PDF

 * Corresponding Author. 

   Corresponding author's ORCID profile:  https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5650-1838

 Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

  https://doi.org/10.21833/ijaas.2025.06.001

 Abstract

This study examines the balance between usability and security in electronic online services by comparing the effectiveness and user experience of different authentication methods, including password-only authentication, multi-factor authentication (MFA), and biometric authentication. A mixed-methods approach was used to collect both quantitative and qualitative data through usability tests, surveys, semi-structured interviews, and case studies. The findings reveal a clear trade-off between usability and security. While MFA offers stronger protection, it poses usability challenges, especially for novice users who face more errors and take longer to complete tasks. In contrast, password-only authentication was faster and easier, but was seen as inadequate for protecting sensitive data. Biometric authentication emerged as the most preferred option, receiving high satisfaction ratings from both novice and experienced users due to its balance between ease of use and security. These results emphasize the importance of designing user-centered security solutions, such as increasing the adoption of biometric methods and simplifying MFA to enhance the user experience without sacrificing security. The study offers practical recommendations for developers and security professionals to create more accessible and secure online services.

 © 2025 The Authors. Published by IASE.

 This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

 Keywords

 Usability, Security, Multi-factor authentication, Biometric authentication, User experience

 Article history

 Received 25 September 2024, Received in revised form 28 March 2025, Accepted 20 May 2025

 Acknowledgment

The authors gratefully acknowledge the approval and the support of this research study by grant no. SCIA-2023-12-2361 from the Deanship of Scientific Research at Northern Border University, Arar, K.S.A. 

  Compliance with ethical standards

  Conflict of interest: The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

 Citation:

 Allafi R and Darem AA (2025). Usability and security in online authentication systems. International Journal of Advanced and Applied Sciences, 12(6): 1-12

  Permanent Link to this page

 Figures

 Fig. 1 Fig. 2 Fig. 3 Fig. 4 Fig. 5 

 Tables

  Table 1   Table 2  Table 3  Table 4  Table 5  Table 6 Table 7 Table 8 

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