Persistent issues in encryption software: A heuristic and cognitive walkthrough

The support information accompanying security software can be difficult to understand by end-users, who have little knowledge in cyber security. One mechanism for ensuring the integrity and confidentiality of information is encryption software. Unfortunately, software usability issues can hinder an end-user’s capability to properly utilise the security features effectively. To date there has been little research in investigating the usability of encryption software and proposing solutions for improving them. This research paper analysed the usability of encryption software targeting end-users. The research identified several issues that could impede the ability of a novice end-user to adequately utilise the encryption software. A set of proposed recommendations are suggested to improve encryption software which could be empirically verified through further research

Fast computation of the performance evaluation of biometric systems: application to multibiometric

The performance evaluation of biometric systems is a crucial step when designing and evaluating such systems. The evaluation process uses the Equal Error Rate (EER) metric proposed by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO/IEC). The EER metric is a powerful metric which allows easily comparing and evaluating biometric systems. However, the computation time of the EER is, most of the time, very intensive. In this paper, we propose a fast method which computes an approximated value of the EER. We illustrate the benefit of the proposed method on two applications: the computing of non parametric confidence intervals and the use of genetic algorithms to compute the parameters of fusion functions. Experimental results show the superiority of the proposed EER approximation method in term of computing time, and the interest of its use to reduce the learning of parameters with genetic algorithms. The proposed method opens new perspectives for the development of secure multibiometrics systems by speeding up their computation time.Comment: Future Generation Computer Systems (2012

Web-Based Benchmark for Keystroke Dynamics Biometric Systems: A Statistical Analysis

Most keystroke dynamics studies have been evaluated using a specific kind of dataset in which users type an imposed login and password. Moreover, these studies are optimistics since most of them use different acquisition protocols, private datasets, controlled environment, etc. In order to enhance the accuracy of keystroke dynamics' performance, the main contribution of this paper is twofold. First, we provide a new kind of dataset in which users have typed both an imposed and a chosen pairs of logins and passwords. In addition, the keystroke dynamics samples are collected in a web-based uncontrolled environment (OS, keyboards, browser, etc.). Such kind of dataset is important since it provides us more realistic results of keystroke dynamics' performance in comparison to the literature (controlled environment, etc.). Second, we present a statistical analysis of well known assertions such as the relationship between performance and password size, impact of fusion schemes on system overall performance, and others such as the relationship between performance and entropy. We put into obviousness in this paper some new results on keystroke dynamics in realistic conditions.Comment: The Eighth International Conference on Intelligent Information Hiding and Multimedia Signal Processing (IIHMSP 2012), Piraeus : Greece (2012

The Palestinians in Egypt: Identity, Basic Rights and Host State Policies

Egyptian policy towards the estimated 50,000-70,000 Palestinians residing on its territory has resulted in depriving them of basic rights. Practice belies the apparent commitment to help them preserve their Palestinian identity. Consistent denial of rights has eroded, not bolstered, Palestinian identity. Palestinians remain excluded from the international assistance regime in place elsewhere in the region. The welcome that Nasser gave to dispossessed Arab brethren has turned into suspicion of unwelcome foreigners. State policies, security surveillance, and intimidation by the media have forced Palestinians to hide or suppress their identity. The Palestinian community is seen as a threat to Egypt's stability despite the fact that they constitute a mere 0.1 per cent of the population. Thousands of vulnerable young Palestinians are "illegal” despite having been born in Egypt. Unable to leave with any confidence of being allowed to return, they live in constant fear of discovery. As the third or fourth post-nakba generation, they have minimal knowledge of Palestine or connection to traditional kin networks. State policies have left them in limbo, denying them both rights and identit

Palestinian Refugees of Egypt: What Exit Options Are Left for Them?

This paper, based on personal interviews, analysis of Egyptian administrative regulations, and observation of practice of international and regional agreements on refugees, considers the effects of displacement on the Palestinians’ legal status and hence on the way they have conducted their livelihoods in Egypt. While Arab countries have offered to provide temporary protection to Palestinian refugees, as a result of political developments, including relations between the PLO and the host states, the rights afforded to Palestinians in Arab host states have varied greatly over time. Palestinians in Egypt, since 1978, do not receive assistance from the government of Egypt and do not have access to any of its public services. Palestinians also do not receive any assistance or protection from UN bodies in charge of refugee issues. Both regional and international pledges and agreements have not been respected. The ambiguous legal status of Palestinians has affected their livelihoods inmany ways. It has rendered their residence insecure and in many cases illegal. This has affected employment and education opportunities, as well as freedom of movement and association. The deprivation of rights and the unstable legal and economic conditions of Palestinians in Egypt has placed them in a state of “limbo.”Cet article est fondé sur des interviews personnelles, sur une analyse des règlements administratives égyptiennes et sur une observation de la manière dont le droit international et les accords régionaux sur les réfugiés sont mis en pratique, et examine l’effet qu’a eu le déplacement sur le statut légal des Palestiniens et, par conséquent, sur la façon dont ils ont pu mener et gagner leur vie en Égypte. S’il est vrai que les pays arabes ont offert de fournir une protection temporaire aux réfugiés palestiniens, à cause des développements politiques, y compris les relations de l’OLP avec les pays d’accueil, les droits concédés aux Palestiniens dans les pays hôtes arabes ont varié grandement au cours des années. Depuis 1978, les Palestiniens qui se trouvent en Égypte ne reçoivent plus d’assistance du gouvernement égyptien et n’ont pas accès aux services publics. En plus, les Palestiniens ne reçoivent aucune assistance ou de protection des organismes onusiens en charge des questions des réfugiés. Les promesses et les accords, tant régionaux qu’internationaux, n’ont pas été respectés. L’ambiguïté du statut légal des Palestiniens a affecté leur capacité de gagner leur vie de diverses façons. Elle a rendue leur résidence précaire, souvent même illégale. Cela a affecté leur possibilité de trouver de l’emploi et d’avoir accès à l’éducation, ainsi que leur capacité de se déplacer et de s’organiser librement en groupe associatifs. Privés de droits et légalement et économiquement en situation précaire, les Palestiniens d’Égypte se retrouvent dans un état indéterminé

SMART BUILDING ENERGY MODEL USING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

This paper presents a Smart Building Energy Model of Residential Building using Artificial Neural Network model (ANN) to assist architects and engineers in selecting the optimum alternative design of building envelope parameters such that external wall and roof insulation material types and window types that minimizes the cost of energy consumption of a residential building to transform it to a green building. Up to 1540 Simulations using different material thickness and conductivity values of material insulation properties and windows types are carried out in eQuest software for simulation.. The simulations results are implemented to create an artificial neural network inverse model (ANN) with Matlab/Simulink and the performance is investigated. The results from the artificial neural network outputs and the corresponding eQuest simulation outputs were found very close. In addition, the Mean absolute percentage error (MAPE) is equal to 0.49% , demonstrating a best correlation between outputs and target value, the results show a great solution with good accuracy to predict the energy consumption of residential building for several other building envelope optimization parameters.

Ibn Ḥabīb’s Kitāb al-MuḤabbar and its Place in Early Islamic Historical Writing

The article examines Muḥammad b. Ḥabīb’s historical writing in Kitāb al-Muḥabbar in terms of chronological narrative arrangements, thematic structure, and historical interconnectedness. A textual analysis of his presentations of prophetic narratives and certain events in pre-Islamic history testifies to the significant role of this work in the evolution of early Islamic historiography. Specifically, the study illustrates that the Muḥabbar constitutes one of the earliest Islamic efforts to reconfigure prophetic materials chronologically and eventually create broader thematic interconnections and universal historical contexts. A comparison between Ibn Ḥabīb’s portrayals of these themes and those of other Muslim scholars also illustrates shifts in early Islamic historical writings from local Islamic-Arab needs (such as genealogy) to broader prophetic-biblical universal settings. The finality of Muḥammad’s prophethood and his lineage function in these presentations as a connecting link between the religious-prophetic and Arab-genealogical features. By applying these strategies to organize narrative and chronology, Ibn Ḥabīb laid the foundation for the emergence of early Islamic universal histories during the ninth and tenth centuries

The Representations of Arab-Muslims through the Language Lens

The article examines the use of Arabic as a sociolinguistic marker in American films that were released around the time of the events of 9/11/01 and investigates the extent to which stereotypical factors have been continuing in the same vein as in the past. Specifically, this study is a textual analysis of the application of Arabic in five recent films: Three Kings (dir. David O. Russell, 1999), Hidalgo (dir. Joe Johnston, 2004), Kingdom of Heaven (dir. Ridley Scott, 2005), Syriana (dir. Stephen Gaghan, 2005), and Body of Lies (dir. Ridley Scott, 2008). The article demonstrates that the manner in which Arabic is employed in these movies points to efforts towards a better understanding of the political and social complexities of Arabs and their culture and raises awareness of the Other

The Evolution of the Term ‘qarn’ in Early Islamic Sources

In modern standard Arabic, recurrences of the term qarn (pl. qurun), of the root q-r-n, revolve around two meanings: a horn or one hundred years. 2 The association of qarn with horn is borrowed from the animal domain due to the eye-catching sight oft he animal\u27s horns. Hence, the etymology of qarn is based on the notion that two things are situated parallel to each other. This study, however, will not examine the first meaning of qarn, but instead focus on the second. The attestations of qarn in early Islamic sources point to a composite term that retained a wide range of meanings and interpretations. More importantly, the number of years that qarn denoted was controversial among early Muslim scholars, and it underwent several transformations before it finally came to be associated with one hundred years