Norm Hardy Prize for usable security as part of civilization and AI security

What are you trying to do?We suggest building interaction design for usable security. Make it common to develop user interfaces in which the easy way is the secure way, i.e. “the actions that users want to take, they naturally take in a secure fashion”.How is it done today? What are the limitations of the current system?Civilization’s computer infrastructure is patchwork and insecurable. Problems include attacks on electric grid, major financial meltdowns, and other attack vectors propagated by advanced AI.What is new in your approach and why do you think it will be successful?Make all decisions an explicit part of the user interface, which will allow users to understand the implications of their actions. The entire problem is too large to tackle. What we can do is create a prize, i.e. the Norm Hardy Prize, to honor the late computer security pioneer and promote the secure use of computers.If successful, what difference will it make?Voluntary cooperation is only meaningful when based on informed consent. UIs are where the human world meets the crypto world. The UI security issue *is* the issue of enabling the human to understand what they are consenting to.How much will it cost?Ideally, $10K annually for 5 years. Plus $5K for admin, physical award, travel stipends to speaking engagement, press release and PR.How long will it take?The prize will be given annually.What are the mid-term and final exams to check for completeness?To check for prize awardees quality: use rank votes for submissions.To check for success of prize purpose, determine if prize winners’ systems are adopted in widely used systems afterward.