A survey on security visualization techniques for web information systems

Purpose – By reviewing different information visualization techniques for securing web information systems, this paper aims to provide a foundation for further studies of the same topic. Another purpose of the paper is to discover directions in which there is a lack of extensive research, thereby encouraging more investigations. Design/methodology/approach – The related techniques are classified first by their locations in the web information systems architecture: client side, server side, and application side. Then the techniques in each category are further classified based on attributes specific to that category. Findings – Although there is much research on information visualization for securing web browser user interface and server side systems, there are very few studies about the same techniques on web application side. Originality/value – This paper is the first published paper reviewing extensively information visualization techniques for securing web information systems. The classification used here offers a framework for further studies as well as in-depth investigations. © 2013, Emerald Group Publishing Limited