Analysis of player behavior and EEG readings in a cybersecurity game

Abstract

This paper describes a study of player behavior and electroencephalography (EEG) headset readings while playing a cybersecurity educational video game. While difficulty was progressively increased, player actions and EEG readings were recorded, along with a pre- and post-test of student knowledge and opinions regarding information security awareness and perceived immersion. This study employed Brute Force, a tower defense game that teaches players to choose strong, unique, and memorable passwords. Participants reported significantly more responsible attitudes regarding the importance of strong, unique passwords. More successful players who played the full fifteen minutes tended to improve at identifying strong passwords from a list. After playing the game, participants were most likely to add password length and uniqueness as important password strategies.