A conceptual framework for cyber security awareness and education in SA

Abstract

The Internet is becoming increasingly interwoven in the daily lives of many individuals, organisations and nations. It has, to a large extent, had a positive effect on the way people communicate. It has also introduced new avenues for business; and it has offered nations an opportunity to govern online. Nevertheless, although cyberspace offers an endless list of services and opportunities, it is also accompanied by many risks, of which many Internet users are not aware. As such, various countries have developed and implemented cyber-security awareness and education measures to counter the perceived ignorance of the Internet users. However, there is currently a definite lack in South Africa (SA) in this regard; as there are currently, little government-led and sponsored cyber-security awareness and education initiatives. The primary research objective of this paper, therefore, is to propose a cyber-security awareness and education framework for SA that would assist in creating a cyber-secure culture in SA among all of the users of the Internet. This framework will be developed on the basis of key factors extrapolated from a comparative analysis of relevant developed countries.