Security Awareness Level of Smartphone Users: an Exploratory Case Study

Abstract

As smartphone technology becomes more and more mature, its usage extends beyond and covers also applications that require security. However, since smartphones can contain valuable information, they normally become the target of attackers. A physically lost or a hacked smartphone may cause catastrophic results for its owner. To prevent such undesired events, smartphone users should be aware of existing threats and countermeasures to be taken against them. Therefore, user awareness is a critical factor for smartphone security. This study investigates the awareness level of smartphone users for different security-related parameters and compares the awareness levels of different user groups categorized according to their demographic data. It is based on a survey study conducted on a population with a different range of age, education level, and IT security expertise. According to the obtained results, in general, the awareness level of participants is fairly low, which needs considerable improvement. In terms of age, the oldest group has the lowest level followed by the youngest group. Education level, in general, has a positive effect on the awareness level. Having knowledge about IT is another factor increasing the security awareness level of smartphone users.