Building Competitive Advantage from Ubuntu: An African Information Security Awareness Model

Abstract

Research shows an increase in information security threats originating from the human element. These threats are being aggravated by organizations continuing to only invest in technical controls like antivirus and firewall technologies to guard cyber assets. However, a well-planned information security awareness campaign can potentially alter the employees’ behaviour towards security. The body of knowledge is continuously growing within the information security space, yet it seems that there is a lack of supporting theories or models for the African context. This paper argues that African information security awareness and compliance initiatives can only be addressed effectively by the consideration that an African employee is not a solitary agent but actually a member of the wider community. The purpose of this study is to propose and validate a model for information security awareness and compliance that builds its competitive advantage from the Ubuntu philosophy.