Federal Government Information Technology

The People Who Fight Hacking and Cybercrime Are Turning to Designers For Help

Nextgov: Not all intelligence analysts wear plain suits and grim expressions.

At the IBM Design studios in Austin, Texas, a team of 30 designers are enthusiastically parsing malware threats, viruses, hacks and malicious IP addresses to visualize the veins of cyberattacks all over the world.

Led by former print graphic designer Liz Holz, IBM’s growing security-focused creative unit is comprised of UX (user experience) specialists, industrial designers, content writers, motion animators, illustrators, developers, and user researchers. Using a design process called “observe-reflect-make” and great data visualization, the team makes products used by some 10,000 law-enforcement agencies and private security firms in 133 countries.

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