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Employees’ cybersecurity awareness and behaviour in South African higher education institutions
Dissertation (MIT (Information Systems))--University of Pretoria 2024.
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| Other Authors: | |
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
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University of Pretoria
2024
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| _version_ | 1867613519321497600 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author2 | Steyn, Adriana Aletta (Riana) |
| author_browse | Steyn, Adriana Aletta (Riana) |
| author_facet | Steyn, Adriana Aletta (Riana) |
| collection | Thesis |
| dc_rights_str_mv | © 2023 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. |
| description | Dissertation (MIT (Information Systems))--University of Pretoria 2024. |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/97127 |
| institution | University of Pretoria (South Africa) |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:37:26.341Z |
| license_str | Other — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository |
| publishDate | 2024 |
| publishDateRange | 2024 |
| publishDateSort | 2024 |
| publisher | University of Pretoria |
| publisherStr | University of Pretoria |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository |
| spelling | oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/97127 Employees’ cybersecurity awareness and behaviour in South African higher education institutions Steyn, Adriana Aletta (Riana) u20800917@tuks.co.za Yusuf, Abdullahi Abiodun UCTD Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) South African Cybersecurity Cybersecurity policies Awareness Cybersecurity awareness Cybersecurity behaviour Theory of planned behaviour Higher education institutions Cybersecurity policies Protection motivation theory Institutional cybersecurity environment Dissertation (MIT (Information Systems))--University of Pretoria 2024. The widespread cyberattacks necessitate robust cybersecurity practices within South African higher education institutions (HEIs). System users, particularly employees, are often the inadvertent major entry for cyberattacks, highlighting the critical need for employees’ cybersecurity behaviour to adhere to ethical guidelines and adapt to evolving cyber threats. This study investigates how South African HEIs’ cybersecurity environment, encompassing factors like cybersecurity awareness, policies and prior employee experience, influences employee cybersecurity behaviour. Building on the protection motivation theory and the theory of planned behaviour, the study developed a conceptual model that integrates and explores the impact of cybersecurity awareness, policy awareness and experience within the institutional context on employee attitudes, subjective norms, perceived behavioural control, threat appraisal, and self-efficacy, ultimately leading to cybersecurity-compliant behaviour. This model was tested using data from a survey of 283 employees in South African HEIs. Structural equation modelling, ANOVA and post hoc procedures are employed to test the proposed hypotheses. The findings indicate that employees are more competent in managing cybersecurity tasks when they are aware of or know their institutions’ cybersecurity policies than those unaware. The findings show that institutions’ cybersecurity environment, including cybersecurity awareness, policy and experience, positively influences employees’ attitudes, subjective norms and perceived behavioural control, which, in turn, positively contribute to their cybersecurity-compliant behaviour. Similarly, perceived behavioural control, threat appraisal and self-efficacy directly and significantly impact cybersecurity-compliant behaviour. These results highlight the importance of fostering a comprehensive South African HEIs cybersecurity environment, highlighting awareness training, transparent policies, practical experience, and efforts to cultivate empowerment sense amongst employees regarding cybersecurity practices. This study contributes to advancing knowledge on cybersecurity behaviour in South African HEIs by offering insights specific to the institutional cybersecurity environment and ultimately fostering a more secure cybersecurity structure within these institutions. Informatics MIT (Information Systems) Unrestricted Faculty of Engineering, Built Environment and Information Technology SDG-04: Quality Education SDG-09: Industry, innovation and infrastructure SDG-16: Peace,justice and strong institutions SDG-17: Partnerships for the goals 2024-07-19T09:52:37Z 2024-07-19T09:52:37Z 2024-09 2024-05 Dissertation * S2024 http://hdl.handle.net/2263/97127 DOI: https://doi.org/10.25403/UPresearchdata.26311141.v1 https://doi.org/10.25403/UPresearchdata.26311141 en © 2023 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. application/pdf University of Pretoria |
| spellingShingle | UCTD Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) South African Cybersecurity Cybersecurity policies Awareness Cybersecurity awareness Cybersecurity behaviour Theory of planned behaviour Higher education institutions Cybersecurity policies Protection motivation theory Institutional cybersecurity environment Employees’ cybersecurity awareness and behaviour in South African higher education institutions |
| title | Employees’ cybersecurity awareness and behaviour in South African higher education institutions |
| title_full | Employees’ cybersecurity awareness and behaviour in South African higher education institutions |
| title_fullStr | Employees’ cybersecurity awareness and behaviour in South African higher education institutions |
| title_full_unstemmed | Employees’ cybersecurity awareness and behaviour in South African higher education institutions |
| title_short | Employees’ cybersecurity awareness and behaviour in South African higher education institutions |
| title_sort | employees cybersecurity awareness and behaviour in south african higher education institutions |
| topic | UCTD Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) South African Cybersecurity Cybersecurity policies Awareness Cybersecurity awareness Cybersecurity behaviour Theory of planned behaviour Higher education institutions Cybersecurity policies Protection motivation theory Institutional cybersecurity environment |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/2263/97127 https://doi.org/10.25403/UPresearchdata.26311141 |