Explanipedia

Not Even Nice Work If You Can Get It; A Longitudinal Study of Uber's Algorithmic Pay and Pricing Open

Reuben Binns, Jake Stein, Sunil K. Datta, Max Van Kleek, Nigel Shadbolt · 2025

Not Even Nice Work If You Can Get It; A Longitudinal Study of Uber's Algorithmic Pay and Pricing Open

Reuben Binns, Jake Stein, Sunil K. Datta, Max Van Kleek, Nigel Shadbolt · 2025

Ride-sharing platforms like Uber market themselves as enabling `flexibility' for their workforce, meaning that drivers are expected to anticipate when and where the algorithm will allocate them jobs, and how well remunerated those jobs wil…

Bridging Borders, Breaking Biases: Envisioning Technologies to Support North Korean Defectors in South Korea Open

Hayoun Noh, Hyunah Jo, Ge Wang, Max Van Kleek, Younah Kang · 2025

CounselAR: Exploring How AR Filters Facilitate Online Psychotherapy In the Wild With South Korean Young Adults Open

Hayoun Noh, Salman Muin Kayser Chishti, Hyunah Jo, Nikki Newhouse, Songi Kim , et al. · 2025

The Interaction Layer: An Exploration for Co-Designing User-LLM Interactions in Parental Wellbeing Support Systems Open

Sruthi Viswanathan, Seray Ibrahim, Ravi Shankar, Reuben Binns, Max Van Kleek , et al. · 2025

Trouble in Paradise? Understanding Mastodon Admin's Motivations, Experiences, and Challenges Running Decentralised Social Media Open

Zhilin Zhang, Jun Zhao, Ge Wang, Samantha‐Kaye Johnston, George Chalhoub , et al. · 2024

Decentralised social media platforms are increasingly being recognised as viable alternatives to their centralised counterparts. Among these, Mastodon stands out as a popular alternative, offering a citizen-powered option distinct from lar…

The Interaction Layer: An Exploration for Co-Designing User-LLM Interactions in Parental Wellbeing Support Systems Open

Sruthi Viswanathan, Seray Ibrahim, Ravi Shankar, Reuben Binns, Max Van Kleek , et al. · 2024

Parenting brings emotional and physical challenges, from balancing work, childcare, and finances to coping with exhaustion and limited personal time. Yet, one in three parents never seek support. AI systems potentially offer stigma-free, a…

Starting a New Life after Crossing the Tumen River: How North Korean Defectors Use Digital Technology in Transition Open

Hayoun Noh, S.-J. Yoon, Hyunah Jo, Max Van Kleek, Younah Kang · 2024

In a world where digital technology is omnipresent, North Korea stands as an outlier, with most citizens uninformed about its existence. This study explores the experiences of North Korean defectors as they transition to a highly digitally…

KOALA Hero Toolkit: A New Approach to Inform Families of Mobile Datafication Risks Open

Ge Wang, Jun Zhao, Konrad Kollnig, Adrien Zier, Blanche Duron , et al. · 2024

Children today are deeply immersed in the online world, where their activities are routinely tracked, analysed, and monetised. This exposes them to various datafication risks, including harmful profiling, micro-targeting and behavioural en…

CHAITok: A Proof-of-Concept System Supporting Children's Sense of Data Autonomy on Social Media Open

Ge Wang, Jun Zhao, Samantha‐Kaye Johnston, Zhilin Zhang, Max Van Kleek , et al. · 2024

Social media has become a primary source of entertainment and education for children globally. While much attention has been given to children's online well-being, a pressing concern often goes unnoticed: the pervasive data harvesting unde…

“I finally felt I had the tools to control these urges”: Empowering Students to Achieve Their Device Use Goals With the Reduce Digital Distraction Workshop Open

Ulrik Lyngs, Kai Lukoff, Petr Slovák, Michael Inzlicht, Maureen Freed , et al. · 2024

Digital self-control tools (DSCTs) help people control their time and attention on digital devices, using interventions like distraction blocking or usage tracking. Most studies of DSCTs’ effectiveness have focused on whether a single inte…

“If Someone Walks In On Us Talking, Pretend to be My Friend, Not My Therapist": Challenges and Opportunities for Digital Mental Health Support in Saudi Arabia Open

Sarah Aldaweesh, Deemah Alateeq, Max Van Kleek, Nigel Shadbolt · 2024

Mental health disorders are prevalent worldwide, yet they remain stigmatized, especially in the Middle East. While mHealth has the potential to circumvent traditional barriers, research on its application remains scarce in Arab countries. …

Computers as Bad Social Actors: Dark Patterns and Anti-Patterns in Interfaces that Act Socially Open

Lize Alberts, Ulrik Lyngs, Max Van Kleek · 2024

Interfaces increasingly mimic human social behaviours. Beyond prototypical examples like chatbots, basic automated systems like app notifications or self-checkout machines likewise address or 'talk to' people in person-like ways. Whilst ea…

Understanding Online Parental Help-Seeking and Help-Giving in Early Childhood: The Design Challenges of Supporting Complex Parenting Questions Open

Seray Ibrahim, Jazz Rui Xia Ang, Melina Petsolari, Rebecca Michelson, Yuzhen Dong , et al. · 2024

Early parenting is one of the strongest predictors of child well-being. Online social communities have shown promise in supporting parents across a range of contexts. However, we only have a limited understanding of how posters and comment…

‘We are adults and deserve control of our phones’: Examining the risks and opportunities of a right to repair for mobile apps Open

Konrad Kollnig, Siddhartha Datta, Thomas Şerban von Davier, Max Van Kleek, Reuben Binns , et al. · 2023

Many mobile apps are designed not just to support end-users' needs, but also commercial aims. This can result in app designs that compromise end-user privacy, safety, and well-being. Since apps nowadays provide vital digital information an…

How Should We Support Designing Privacy-Friendly Apps for Children? Using a Research through Design Process to Understand Developers' Needs and Challenges Open

Anirudh Ekambaranathan, Jun Zhao, Max Van Kleek · 2023

Mobile apps used by children often make use of harmful techniques, such as data tracking and targeted advertising. Previous research has suggested that developers face several systemic challenges in designing apps that prioritise children'…

We Are Not There Yet: The Implications of Insufficient Knowledge Management for Organisational Compliance Open

Thomas Şerban von Davier, Konrad Kollnig, Reuben Binns, Max Van Kleek, Nigel Shadbolt · 2023

Since GDPR went into effect in 2018, many other data protection and privacy regulations have been released. With the new regulation, there has been an associated increase in industry professionals focused on data protection and privacy. Bu…

Computers as Bad Social Actors: Dark Patterns and Anti-Patterns in Interfaces that Act Socially Open

Lize Alberts, Max Van Kleek · 2023

Technologies increasingly mimic human-like social behaviours. Beyond prototypical conversational agents like chatbots, this also applies to basic automated systems like app notifications or self-checkout machines that address or 'talk to' …

What Country, University, or Research Institute, Performed the Best on Covid-19 During the First Wave of the Pandemic? Open

Petar Radanliev, David De Roure, Rob Walton, Max Van Kleek, Omar Santos , et al. · 2022

In this article, we conduct data mining and statistical analysis on the most effective countries, universities, and companies, based on their output (e.g., produced or collaborated) on COVID-19 during the first wave of the pandemic. Hence,…

Goodbye Tracking? Impact of iOS App Tracking Transparency and Privacy Labels Open

Konrad Kollnig, Anastasia Shuba, Max Van Kleek, Reuben Binns, Nigel Shadbolt · 2022

Tracking is a highly privacy-invasive data collection practice that has been ubiquitous in mobile apps for many years due to its role in supporting advertising-based revenue models. In response, Apple introduced two significant changes wit…

The Goldilocks level of support: Using user reviews, ratings, and installation numbers to investigate digital self-control tools Open

Ulrik Lyngs, Kai Lukoff, Laura Csuka, Petr Slovák, Max Van Kleek , et al. · 2022

Much effort has been invested in designing digital systems that keep people ‘hooked’. By contrast, comparatively little is known about how designers can support people in re-gaining control. Online, however, hundreds of apps and browser ex…

Informing Age-Appropriate AI: Examining Principles and Practices of AI for Children Open

Ge Wang, Jun Zhao, Max Van Kleek, Nigel Shadbolt · 2022

AI systems are becoming increasingly pervasive within children's devices, apps, and services. However, it is not yet well-understood how risks and ethical considerations of AI relate to children. This paper makes three contributions to thi…

Are iPhones Really Better for Privacy? A Comparative Study of iOS and Android Apps Open

Konrad Kollnig, Anastasia Shuba, Reuben Binns, Max Van Kleek, Nigel Shadbolt · 2022

While many studies have looked at privacy properties of the Android and Google Play app ecosystem, comparatively much less is known about iOS and the Apple App Store, the most widely used ecosystem in the US. At the same time, there is inc…

Before and after GDPR: tracking in mobile apps Open

Konrad Kollnig, Reuben Binns, Max Van Kleek, Ulrik Lyngs, Jun Zhao , et al. · 2021

Third-party tracking, the collection and sharing of behavioural data about individuals, is a significant and ubiquitous privacy threat in mobile apps. The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) was introduced in 2018 to protect perso…

A Fait Accompli? An Empirical Study into the Absence of Consent to\n Third-Party Tracking in Android Apps Open

Konrad Kollnig, Reuben Binns, Pierre Dewitte, Max Van Kleek, Ge Wang , et al. · 2021

Third-party tracking allows companies to collect users' behavioural data and\ntrack their activity across digital devices. This can put deep insights into\nusers' private lives into the hands of strangers, and often happens without\nusers'…

A Fait Accompli? An Empirical Study into the Absence of Consent to Third-Party Tracking in Android Apps Open

Konrad Kollnig, Reuben Binns, Pierre Dewitte, Max Van Kleek, Ge Wang , et al. · 2021

Third-party tracking allows companies to collect users' behavioural data and track their activity across digital devices. This can put deep insights into users' private lives into the hands of strangers, and often happens without users' aw…

“Money makes the world go around”: Identifying Barriers to Better Privacy in Children’s Apps From Developers’ Perspectives Open

Anirudh Ekambaranathan, Jun Zhao, Max Van Kleek · 2021

The industry for children's apps is thriving at the cost of children's privacy: these apps routinely disclose children's data to multiple data trackers and ad networks. As children spend increasing time online, such exposure accumulates to…

Design of a Dynamic and Self-Adapting System, Supported with Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Real-Time Intelligence for Predictive Cyber Risk Analytics in Extreme Environments – Cyber Risk in the Colonisation of Mars Open

Petar Radanliev, David De Roure, Kevin Page, Max Van Kleek, Omar Santos , et al. · 2021

Cyber-risks from using IoT devices for managing COVID-19 Open

Petar Radanliev, David De Roure, Max Van Kleek · 2021

Scientific research is increasingly focused on COVID-19 management with IoT technologies and artificial intelligence (AI). Autonomous connected devices, performing medical tasks without physical human interaction, is certainly beneficial f…

Protection or punishment? relating the design space of parental control apps and perceptions about them to support parenting for online safety Open

Ge Wang, Jun Zhao, Max Van Kleek, Nigel Shadbolt · 2021

Parental control apps, which are mobile apps that allow parents to monitor and restrict their children's activities online, are becoming increasingly adopted by parents as a means of safeguarding their children's online safety. However, it…

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