Cybersecurity behaviour: A conceptual taxonomy

Abstract

User cybersecurity behaviour is a concern for organisations as well as home users. This is because cyber-criminals have made a shift from targeting security systems to targeting the users of the systems. As a result, an increasing number of studies have been conducted in efforts to understand user cybersecurity behaviour. The advantage in understanding user behaviour is that researchers and security practitioners can apply this knowledge and begin to change behaviour to benefit cybersecurity. Different studies have categorised similar cybersecurity behaviours, however the naming conventions differ across studies. This brings out the first contribution of the paper, unified terminology for the cybersecurity behaviour. Secondly, most studies were conducted in an organisational setting. User behaviour in other environments is yet to be identified and categorised. The second contribution of this study is the identification and categorisation of home user cybersecurity behaviour. The identification and classification of more cybersecurity behaviour is aimed to have a positive impact in the creation of strategic interventions to change and maintain good cybersecurity behaviour.