Avast Online Security & Privacy
A major redesign of the flagship browser extension with over 10 million users.
Executive summary
We took a sidelined browser extension with 12M+ installs and brought it back into the spotlight. Along with a brand new visual style, reformed information architecture, and a revised feature set, we introduced an interactive Privacy Advisor guide system.
Through a meticulous design and development process, our team delivered a fully refreshed product to praise from users and leadership. Avast Online Security & Privacy made a strong return and started to play an integral role as a major digital touchpoint for both existing and potential customers.
Team
A cross-functional effort spanning product, design, research, engineering, QA, marketing, localization, and support. The core team carried the redesign from discovery through launch, with additional specialists supporting rollout across channels and markets.
Problem statement
Amid controversial events surrounding Avast's subsidiary Jumpshot and its shutdown in January 2020, the browser extension called Avast Online Security was one of the immediate products that had to fall from grace. The practice of manipulating user data was brought to an abrupt end, and the company fundamentally shifted direction to focus on protecting customer privacy.
The extension was put into maintenance mode, its user base and store reviews taking a noticeable hit. After the dust settled, it had been lying on the shelf for over a year. In the meantime, privacy became a key pillar of Avast's commitment to digital freedom and one of the cornerstones of the upcoming rebrand.
With that, it was time for such a high-volume and impactful customer-facing product to get back on track, start bringing real value to users, and deliver on Avast's renewed privacy commitment.
Design goals
Framework
Build a new direction
Revisit an outdated framework and redefine it through design thinking.
Brand
Launch with a new visual system
Outfit the product with a new visual style and branding aligned with Avast One.
Privacy
Ship meaningful privacy features
Design, build, and introduce a set of features centered on user privacy.
Experience
Design the full funnel
Create user experiences across the full journey, from acquisition to retention.
Integration
Connect it to the product ecosystem
Build integrations with the existing lineup and pave the way for future connection to the flagship product.
Retention
Increase everyday relevance
Make the extension useful enough to become part of users' regular browsing habits.
Design process
At the core of our design process we employed the classic double diamond design model. The initial kick-off and discovery phase were covered by my teammate Petr, who thoroughly explored multiple directions and produced an extensive body of research.
My role
Turning discovery into a finished product direction
I picked up the torch when it came to narrowing down the scope, defining the problem, expanding the work from concepts to high fidelity, testing, and delivering the final results.
Issues of the old product
When defining the new information architecture, our initial approach was to retain the single-screen framework and use widget-style cards. I quickly discovered that it would not be ideal.
It lacked a focal point on the main screen and did not make the best use of UI space.
Multiple jobs-to-be-done would compete for users' attention.
Tons of controls would further dilute the experience.
There were more features packed in than before, and we still needed room to scale.
New information architecture
Each UI element and user journey was scrutinized and iterated on. Many variables affected the decision-making process. For the purposes of this case study, I focused on the refined post-feedback screens and the decisions behind them.
The focal point became immediately clear, and the layout made much better use of UI space.
Jobs-to-be-done were separated into their own sections and no longer interfered with each other.
Each screen had a single primary action and, at most, a secondary one.
The new sidebar structure created breathing room for richer feature detail and future additions.
Prototype
After multiple rounds of presenting new concepts to stakeholders and gathering feedback from designers and engineers, I got the green light to produce high-fidelity assets and build a prototype in Figma. That prototype helped us collect further feedback both internally and externally, and it became the basis for qualitative user testing with three target groups:
- People who were already using this browser extension.
- People who were using our products and were familiar with the brand.
- General participants with no prior familiarity with our products.
User experience research outcome
Users responded well to the redesign, especially the new light visual style, and they moved through the product with ease.
Some features were conceptually unfamiliar, which meant a few people did not immediately understand what they were looking at. We addressed that by simplifying verbose copy and, in some cases, replacing full paragraphs with a single line and a link to the relevant help section. We documented every moment of hesitation or friction around navigation and actions, so I could smooth out those rough edges in the next iteration.
Handoff
After a couple more iteration cycles, we were satisfied with the new designs, so it was time to hand them off to development. As a designer, I always try to support the devs' workflow by including them in the process as early as possible and providing meaningful, self-contained deliverables as the project moves forward.
This gave engineers a much easier time with sprint planning and let them work on the foundation while hi-fi designs were still being prepared and finalized.
During development I had close back-and-forth with engineers to make sure everything matched the established vision. Once visuals started coming in, we held regular sessions to iron out rough spots. Despite the team working remotely, I happened to be in the same city as our main frontend developer, so we made the most of it and worked together in person.
Localization to 20+ languages
AOSP was available globally and had to be localized across European, Asian, and Middle Eastern markets with every release or update.
This introduced another level of complexity. One example was producing promotional materials for various online stores. Another was text length variability across languages, sometimes dramatic enough to break the UI. Credit to our QA team for catching every instance where that became a problem, so we could fix it in a timely manner.
How we measured success
Avast has a wide array of analytics tools to establish and track almost any metric, all stripped of personal data. Some of the things we looked at included:
Product adoption
Onboarding success, core flow completion rates and feature opt-ins. Engagement over the first month.
Usage & interaction
More specific data on how people used each feature, helping us understand what brought the most value.
Privacy Advisor
Guide completion, depth, popularity across guides, platform rankings, and other engagement signals.
Promotional messaging
Engagement with in-product promotions and cross-sell opportunities, later extended into a subscription-based model.
User signals
NPS, surveys, built-in quick feedback forms, store review dynamics, and additional rounds of user testing.
Churn and retention
Installs versus uninstalls after the redesign, including the initial dormant-user spike and the later recovery once campaigns resumed.
Key Results
Strong new product
After the redesign, Avast Online Security & Privacy 2.0 became a powerful standalone offer and an integral touchpoint within the broader customer experience.
Flagship-aligned launch
With a fresh new look, fully reimagined UX, and a new privacy-first posture, AOSP became the only rebranded product launched alongside the flagship Avast One in the company's latest design language.
Market advantage
We created a significant new marketing differentiator.
New touchpoints
We added contextual first-purchase touchpoints for meaningful cross- and up-selling to other products.
Easy flows
We simplified navigation across all privacy settings, making key user journeys much more effective.
Live privacy guidance
We introduced an interactive Privacy Advisor feature to guide users in real time on platforms like Facebook, Google, Twitter, and more.
Higher awareness
We measurably increased user awareness of privacy issues and available solutions compared to the previous version.
Stakeholder response
The outcome was well received by stakeholders at all levels, including the C-suite.
Personal takeaway
It was a fascinating design-driven project. I'm grateful for the chance to lead such a significant part of the design process and see the success of our efforts. Huge thanks to everyone involved.
By the end of my time with the company, AOSP was the product I felt most attached to. After the redesign, it began to bring a lot of value to people and became much more delightful to use, which is the combination that ultimately matters most.
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