The School of Information Technology (SoIT) at the University of Cincinnati hosts the Information Technology Research Symposium on an annual basis as a forum for the exchange and dissemination of research ideas through the IT EXPO. The 2020 symposium was held on April 14, 2020 and this collection features the digital proceedings of presentations. The primary purpose of the symposium is to exchange research ideas among graduate students, faculty, industry, and practitioners involved in IT research in our field. IT research topics range from state-of-the-art system development to recent progress in scientific endeavors that are theoretical or applied areas of Information Technology, such as cybersecurity, data analytics, Internet of Things (IoT), IT infrastructure, interactive gaming, technologies for smart and connected cities, and user-centered design among others.
This study proposes enhanced oversight of smart homes by leveraging the social networks of homeowners to co-monitor for emergencies, while being mindful of privacy preserving features necessary for adoption. A pilot co-design workshop was conducted to determine features for co-monitoring. A group of four participants provided early findings and informed modifications to study design, and new insights for user behavior were emphasized. By refining the study design, we hope to better target users’ tacit knowledge in future workshops. Early findings include the users’ need for more than simply sharing access to a camera during an emergency in the home; users desired control over the microphone, the camera video stream, and the length of time. We believe this work will contribute to a broader understanding of features that better meet the needs and goals of smart device owners to enable co-monitoring.