About me

I am a final year PhD Student at Paderborn University, Germany (previously at The George Washington University and Max Planck Institute for Security and Privacy).  My research lies at the intersection of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI) and security and privacy. 

My research works with experts (developers, security researchers, and advice givers) on how they can proactively create usable, practical, and ethical security and privacy (S&P) solutions. Besides that, I study security and privacy mental models of users and their challenges with adopting security solutions. My research utilizes a human-centered and sociotechnical lens to solve security and privacy problems, for example, computer security during migration, changing legislative landscapes, geo-political changes, and security for understudied and underserved populations (using qualitative and quantitative methods and social media analysis). 

Before starting my PhD, I worked in the health-care industry for three years as a UX Researcher and Designer. I also have experience in visual and physiological perception research in the automotive, and lighting industries. I have a Bachelor's degree in Computer Science Engineering from Anna University, India and a Master's degree in Human Technology Interaction from TU Eindhoven, The Netherlands.

I have published and won awards at Security and HCI conferences such as USENIX Security, ACM CCS, IEEE S&P, CHI, CSCW, and SOUPS. Further, I led the development of  2 HCI and UI design classes with Prof. Dr. Yasemin Acar at Paderborn University.