Evidence-Driven Security Assessment
Evaluating authentication mechanisms, interfaces, attacks, and user behavior to identify where risks emerge and where designs can be improved.
About
Mohammed Jubur
Digital Identity Security · Authentication · Human-Centered Cybersecurity
I am an Assistant Professor of Computer Science and a cybersecurity researcher working at the intersection of digital identity, authentication, security usability, and human behavior.
I study how security mechanisms behave in real-world use—where protocol design, interfaces, user decisions, and attacker behavior all interact—and use that evidence to help shape systems that are both stronger and clearer to use.
What I Do
I study security systems as people actually use them.
My work focuses on authentication and digital identity systems that require people to interpret information, recognize risk, and make security decisions. I am particularly interested in what happens when technically strong mechanisms meet real interfaces, real users, and realistic attacks.
That means looking beyond whether a protocol is correct in isolation. I study how prompts are presented, what context users receive, how repeated requests or time pressure influence decisions, and where attackers can take advantage of gaps between technical protection and human understanding.
My goal is to contribute to security systems that provide strong technical protection while making important decisions clearer, more understandable, and less dependent on perfect user attention.
Why this matters
A security mechanism can be technically sound and still fail in practice if its interface is confusing, its warnings are easy to ignore, or its protection depends too heavily on users recognizing every threat. I therefore treat usability and human behavior as part of the security model itself.
Areas of Expertise
Where my research and practice are concentrated.
My work connects authentication technology, password security, phishing resistance, system design, and the human decisions that influence whether security mechanisms succeed in practice.
Digital Identity Security
Authentication Security
Multi-Factor Authentication
Push Authentication
Password & Password Manager Security
Phishing-Resistant Systems
Passwordless Authentication
Security Usability
01
Digital Identity & Authentication
I study how identity and authentication systems can establish trust, resist compromise, and remain understandable when deployed in real environments.
02
MFA & Push Authentication
I examine the security and usability of second-factor and push-based authentication, including how users interpret requests and distinguish legitimate actions from fraudulent ones.
03
Password & Password Manager Security
I investigate password-management approaches, including store-less designs, and how credential systems can reduce exposure to weak, reused, or stolen passwords.
04
Human-Centered & Phishing-Resistant Security
I study designs that reduce an attacker's opportunity to exploit user attention, interface ambiguity, or convincing phishing interactions.
Problems I Work On
Security questions that emerge in real use.
I focus on problems that appear when technical protection, system design, attacker behavior, and human decision-making interact.
01
Can users tell what they are approving?
I study how authentication requests can provide enough context for people to distinguish legitimate actions from unexpected or fraudulent requests.
02
Can strong authentication remain usable?
I examine how security mechanisms can provide strong protection without creating unnecessary friction, confusion, or cognitive burden.
03
Can systems protect users when attention fails?
I explore designs that make systems themselves more resistant to phishing and misuse instead of depending entirely on perfect user vigilance.
What I Bring
From security evidence to clearer decisions and stronger systems.
I combine technical analysis with an understanding of how security systems behave when people use them in real environments.
Research-to-Practice Translation
Turning technical security problems and research findings into clear, actionable explanations for researchers, technical teams, students, and decision-makers.
Human-Centered Security Design
Treating technical protection, interface design, and usability as parts of the same security system rather than separate objectives.
Academic Background
Education and research foundation.
My academic path established the foundation for my work in computer science, cybersecurity, authentication, and human-centered security.
2021
Ph.D. in Computer Science — Cybersecurity
University of Alabama at Birmingham
Dissertation: “On the Security and Usability of New Authentication Paradigms for Web Authentication.”
Advisor: Dr. Nitesh Saxena
2013–2015
M.S. in Computer Science
Kentucky State University
2006–2011
B.S. in Computer Science
Jazan University
Experience
Academic and research appointments.
Experience spanning cybersecurity research, higher education, and user-facing security systems.
August 2021–Present
Assistant Professor of Computer Science
Jazan University, Saudi Arabia
2017–2021
Graduate Research Assistant
SPIES Lab, University of Alabama at Birmingham
Professional Service & Outreach
Peer review, knowledge sharing, and community contribution.
I serve as a reviewer for international journals in cybersecurity, information security, dependable computing, and related areas, including:
- IEEE Transactions on Sustainable Computing
- IEEE Transactions on Dependable and Secure Computing
- Computers & Security
- Scientific Reports
- International Journal of Information Security
- Journal of Information Security and Applications
I also contribute to the research community through reviews for international conferences and other venues in cybersecurity, authentication, dependable computing, and human-centered security.
Community Outreach
- Cybersecurity and digital-awareness workshops for university and community audiences.
- Cybersecurity and digital-awareness service activities with Attaa Digital, an initiative associated with the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology.
Let's Work Together
Working on a challenge involving digital identity or authentication?
I welcome conversations with researchers, organizations, technical teams, and professionals working on digital identity, authentication, phishing-resistant systems, password security, and human-centered cybersecurity.
I am also open to research collaboration, technical discussions, invited talks, educational initiatives, and projects that connect cybersecurity research with practical problems.
Connect
Professional and academic profiles.
For collaboration, professional enquiries, academic discussions, or research-related conversations, you can contact me through my institutional email or professional profiles.
Email: mjabour [at] jazanu.edu.sa