Martin

Ahead of the Privacy Curve

In 2018, before privacy became a central concern in technology design, I conceptualized Martin—a digital vault that addressed the fundamental human need for security, trust, and legacy in our digital lives. I saw the future of digital identity protection before major players and regulations made it a priority: this was pre-GDPR enforcement, before the Cambridge Analytica scandal made headlines, and years before Apple would make privacy a cornerstone of their brand.

Martin wasn’t just a digital vault; it was a holistic approach to life’s administrative complexities—from everyday document management to the profound question of what happens to our digital selves after we’re gone. This project represented my first comprehensive application of design thinking principles, allowing me to explore genuine human needs at the intersection of security, collaboration, and legacy.

The Challenge

Creating a truly valuable digital vault solution required addressing several critical challenges:

• Beyond Simple Storage – Existing vault solutions focused on simple document storage but missed the complex social dynamics of document management
• Collaborative Privacy – The seemingly contradictory need to keep information both secure and selectively accessible to others
• Digital Legacy Management – The unaddressed question of what happens to our digital assets and responsibilities after death
• Security Without Complexity – The need to provide robust protection without creating excessive barriers to use

The core question became: How might we design a digital vault that addresses the full lifecycle of document management—from creation through collaboration to eventual transfer—while maintaining uncompromising security?

The Approach

I applied a comprehensive design thinking methodology, making this my first full implementation of the UX research practices I had studied:

1. Immersive Research

My process began with a thorough exploration of the digital vault landscape:

• Competitive Benchmark – Analyzing existing vault solutions to identify limitations and opportunities
• User Interviews – Understanding how people currently managed important documents and their pain points
• Contextual Inquiry – Observing real-world document management practices in family settings
• Survey Data – Gathering quantitative insights on security concerns and sharing behaviors

2. Problem Reframing

The research revealed that most digital vault solutions were solving the wrong problem. The challenge wasn’t just about secure storage—it was about managing documents throughout their entire lifecycle and across different human relationships.

This insight led me to reframe the challenge around three key questions:

• How do we manage documents collaboratively while maintaining security?
• How do we handle sensitive information transfer after death?
• How can we make security both robust and accessible?

3. Concept Development

With these reframed challenges, I developed a series of innovative features through multiple rounds of sketching, wireframing, and user feedback. Each concept was evaluated against technical feasibility, user value, and security implications.

4. Iterative Refinement

The most promising concepts were developed into interactive prototypes and tested with users, allowing me to refine the user experience before finalizing the design.

The Solution

Martin emerged as a comprehensive digital vault platform with three groundbreaking features:

Family Circle: Collaborative Document Management

Moving beyond simple storage, Martin introduced relationship-based access management:

• Role-Based Access – Different family members could be assigned specific roles with tailored permissions
• Adaptive Relationships – Access could evolve as relationships changed (e.g., post-divorce documents redistribution)
• Activity Monitoring – Transparent logs of all document access and modifications
• Context-Aware Sharing – Intuitive interfaces for determining appropriate access levels

This feature recognized that document management is inherently social—tax documents might be handled by parents for students, administrative papers might be shared between spouses, and elderly users might need assistance from adult children.

Transfer In Peace: Digital Legacy Management

Martin pioneered the concept of structured post-mortem digital handover:

• Legacy Planning – Designation of documents for transfer after death
• Professional Integration – Authorized notary access for managing estate affairs
• Streamlined Inheritance Procedures – Simplified processes for beneficiaries
• Graduated Access – Controlled revelation of sensitive information to designated individuals

This feature addressed a critical gap in digital service design: what happens to our information when we’re no longer here to manage it? By creating structured processes for digital inheritance, Martin offered peace of mind beyond the user’s lifetime.

ID.Mart: Biometric Security Simplified

Recognizing the limitations of password-based security, Martin introduced an innovative hardware solution:

• Portable Biometric Authentication – A device that allowed fingerprint verification on any computer
• User as the Key – Making the person the authentication method, not a forgettable or hackable password
• Universal Compatibility – Working across devices before integrated biometrics were common
• Physical + Digital Security – Combining something you have (the device) with something you are (biometrics)

In 2018, only high-end devices like the MacBook Pro offered integrated Touch ID. ID.Mart had the goal to democratize biometric security, making it available to everyone regardless of their device.

Impact & Insight

Though Martin was an academic project, it demonstrated remarkable foresight:

• Privacy Anticipation – The project addressed privacy concerns years before they would become central to technology design
• User-Centered Security – The approach balanced protection with usability, a principle now central to security design
• Lifecycle Thinking – The consideration of the complete document lifecycle, including post-mortem management, anticipated the “cradle-to-grave” approach now seen in digital product design

The project served as a proving ground for my design thinking skills and established my ability to identify emerging user needs before they become mainstream.

Key Learnings

Martin taught me several fundamental principles that continue to inform my design approach:

1. Look beyond the obvious problem – By exploring document management as a social and lifecycle challenge rather than just a storage issue, I uncovered deeper user needs

2. Balance competing priorities – Finding the sweet spot between security and accessibility required constant recalibration and testing

3. Consider the complete user journey – Extending the timeline to include post-mortem management revealed entirely new design opportunities

4. Technology should adapt to human relationships – The most successful digital tools acknowledge and accommodate the complexity of real-world human connections

Martin represented my first comprehensive application of design thinking methodology, transforming theoretical knowledge into practical skills. It challenged me to think beyond conventional product boundaries and consider how digital tools interact with the full spectrum of human experience—from daily collaboration to our digital legacy.