Protection Motivation Theory (PMT)

Factors that Influence Young Adults’ Online Security Awareness in Durban in South Africa

ABSTRACT

Online fraud is aggressively threatening individuals and some believe that it can turn into a weapon of electronic warfare in the near future. There is strong agreement that society is required to develop its own resilience against this risk (Jakobsson & Srikwan, 2008).  Vast sums are spent by both the government and business sectors on deflecting mechanisms and on cleaning up after online attacks which are becoming increasingly sophisticated and diverse (Gartner, 2009). The goal of this exploratory study was to establish what the factors that influenced online security were amongst young South African, Durban based adults. The conceptual framework used to guide this approach was Protection Motivation Theory (Rogers, 1983). Data for this study was collected via an online survey. The questionnaire was e-mailed to prospective participants at the University of KwaZulu Natal, where they could submit it electronically. The survey was also sent to the researchers Facebook friends and Twitter followers who fitted the criteria. Significant findings were that gender, race and employment status affected user awareness of online security.

Published In

Volume 12, Issue 1

Journal of Information Warfare

The definitive publication for the best and latest research and analysis on information warfare, information operations, and cyber crime. Available in traditional hard copy or online.

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The definitive publication for the best and latest research and analysis on information warfare, information operations, and cyber crime. Available in traditional hard copy or online.

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