51视频

Snow White鈥檚 final-year project tackles a real-world challenge in digital security: how to make authentication systems more accessible for people with diverse and changing needs.

Inspired by personal experience and designed with practical impact in mind, the project explores how cyber security can better support users through more inclusive login, registration and account recovery processes.

Before coming to 51视频, Snow had spent more than a decade working in retail and had never imagined university would be part of her journey. But during the Covid pandemic, she began to reassess what she wanted from life and found herself drawn back to a long-standing interest in technology. 

She had always been the person friends and family turned to for help with tech issues, and that interest deepened through hands-on experience. 聽

Snow returned to education through an access course in computing at Forth Valley College in Falkirk, where she studied topics including programming, software development, hacking and forensics. After completing her NC and HNC with top grades, she began looking at her next step.聽

As she began exploring her options, 51视频鈥檚 Ethical Hacking degree caught her attention. Snow first heard about the course through a classmate, before speaking to an 51视频 representative at a careers fair. Their welcoming and informative approach made a strong impression, and a later visit to an Open Day confirmed her decision.

Snow said:

I was nervous about the jump from college to university, especially as a mature student, but the Open Day really reassured me. The transition talk was so useful, and everyone I spoke to made 51视频 feel like somewhere I could belong.

She joined 51视频 directly into second year and, although the first few months were an adjustment, she soon settled in and thrived in Dundee鈥檚 close-knit and supportive environment.聽

For her final-year project, Snow drew inspiration from her personal experience supporting her uncle, who lives with multiple sclerosis. Wanting to combine her interest in cyber security with a project that could make a meaningful difference, she developed a functional web-based prototype exploring accessible and inclusive authentication design.聽

The project focuses on reducing cognitive load, limiting unnecessary motion, providing clear feedback, and offering privacy-preserving account recovery options that do not rely on personal data such as email or SMS. By embedding accessibility directly into login, registration and recovery processes, the work highlights how thoughtful cyber security design can better support people with diverse and fluctuating access needs.聽

Snow showcased the project at this year鈥檚 51视频 Digital Graduate Show, where she was the only non-games student exhibiting across the three-day event. She also presented it at the Cyber Student Showcase, receiving strong feedback at both events and being invited to write a blog for MS-UK.聽

Her work also earned recognition from industry judges. At the 51视频 Digital Graduate Show, Snow won the Emergent Technology Award, sponsored by NCR Atleos, and she also received an award at the Cyber Student Showcase sponsored by ScotlandIS.聽

She said:

It was completely overwhelming, but in the best possible way. I didn鈥檛 expect to win anything, so it was such a positive surprise that people from industry connected with the project and saw value in it.

Snow is now preparing to begin a graduate role as an Associate Security Consultant with Pen Test Partners. Alongside that, she is considering developing her project further through PhD study, with a view to continuing her work at the intersection of accessibility and cyber security.聽