TR-08-03: Centered Discretization with Application to Graphical Passwords

Abstract

Discretization is used in click-based graphical passwords so that approximately correct entries can be accepted by the system. We show that the existing discretization scheme of Birget et al. (2006) allows for false accepts and false rejects because the tolerance region is not guaranteed to be centered on the original click-point, causing usability and security concerns. Using empirical data from a large user study, we show that this is a significant issue in practice. We then introduce Centered Discretization, a simpler discretization method that eliminates false accepts and false rejects. It also allows for smaller tolerance regions without impacting the usability of the system.

TR-08-03.pdf