Personal Project 1:
Canary for Residents
I GUIDE.
Not everyone speaks cybersecurity
but Canary does.
In simple, plain language for everyone.
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Lesson Learned
Key Insights
Hi-Fidelity Prototype
Lo-Fidelity Prototype
Brainstorm Solutions
Opportunity
Challenge
Initial Insights
Discovery
Research
Ideation
Prototype
Reflect
UX Process
Competitive Analysis
The Why
Hypothesis
DISCOVERY
What is Canary?
Most security tools forget about the everyday people, leaving them confused and defenseless. Canary reframes cybersecurity as a guided, educational experience that meets users where they are.
Initial Insights
During initial research, I realized that most residential buildings lack structured security practices and accessible tools. While companies have SOC teams, residents are left on their own. Additionally, with the increased risks of shared infrastructure, these often go unnoticed which may leave residents to be vulnerable.
Hypothesis
What if security tools are designed to be more user friendly and community driven, this will make security approachable and feel confident managing their own digital safety.
Understanding the Challenge and Opportunity
RESEARCH
Timeline
December 2024 - January 2025
The Opportunity
To design a user-friendly security app that translates and guides residents to protect themselves even without technical knowledge.
The Challenge
To bridge the gap between everyday usability and security protection for residents
Tools
Figma & Notion
Role & Responsibilities
Solo UX/UI Designer
Competitor Analysis
RESEARCH
I compared Canary to leading security tools like Fing, Norton, and Bitdefender to see how well they address residential security compared to business-level protection.
Comprehensive home device protection with antivirus, VPN and identity protection capabilities
Norton Home Security
Network scanning and monitoring for home networks.
Fing
Strengths:
Strong malware detection and protection
Covers a wide range of security needs including antivirus, malware protection, and VPN.
Weaknesses:
Can be too complex and overwhelming for non-technical users
Primarily focused on device protection, not network or community
Compared to Canary:
Norton has robust individual device protection but lacks community engagement and shared infrastructure monitoring.
Canary's focus on simplifying security and promoting community awareness makes it more user-friendly for residential settings.
Strengths:
Automatically identifies all devices connected to your network
Provide real-time monitoring of network status and notifies users about new or suspicious devices
Weaknesses:
Limited guidance where alerts are mostly technical, requiring users to interpret the information without a guide.
Compared to Canary:
Fing focuses solely on individual networks, while Canary considers the shared infrastructure of the residential environments (like shared Wi-Fi setups or smart systems)
What I Propose…
IDEATION
By blending a combination of Tier-Based Status, Plain Language Alerts, and a Community Awareness Dashboard, Canary aims to make security more easier to understand and foster a sense of responsibility within residential buildings
Safe, Suspicious and Danger — to allow users to quickly assess their situation at a glance
Tier-Based Status
No technical terms, just alerts translated into everyday language.
Plain Language Model
Security should not be a solo job.
Community Awareness Dashboard
"Solution 2"
"Solution 3"
"Solution 1"
PROTOTYPE
Lo-Fidelity Prototype
Hi-Fidelity Prototype
Looking Back…
REFLECT
Key Insights & Wins:
Lesson Learned:
Taking on the entire design process solo taught me the importance of staying organized, adapting quickly, and prioritizing tasks in order to maintain progress.
Since it is a conceptual project, I learned that leveraging AI tools to help with research can boost inspiration and efficiency to streamline my UX process
Learned that creating a sense of community requires balancing openness and safety, making sure residents feel empowered to share without worrying about information.
I took on the challenge of designing all of Canary features on my own, from start to finish. It was a lot to handle but it pushed me to think creatively and stay organized.
Diving into the security market was a new experience, but I quickly figured out where the gaps were and how to address them through design.
I focused on creating a simple, community driven interface that feels safe and inclusive, allowing residents to share security updates without feeling overwhelmed by technical details.