Publication details

Home Publications Publication details

Awareness of Mobile Device Security: A Survey of User's Attitudes
Clarke NL, Symes JE, Saevanee H, Furnell SM
International Journal of Mobile Computing and Multimedia Communications (IJMCMC), Vol 7, Iss 1, 2016
Links:  External link available

Mobile devices have become a ubiquitous technology that are also inherently intertwined with modern society. They have enabled a revolution of how people engage and interact with technology, computing and the Internet. However, as their popularity has increased, so have the threats against them. The paper presents the findings of a survey undertaken to examine users' attitudes and opinions towards security for their mobile device. The results are based upon a respondent population of 301 and show a pattern of users being concerned about security for their device (68%), wanting additional security (63%), yet not engaging with the security they are provided with. Only 54% of respondents utilise a PIN for authentication against a backdrop of 46% of respondents experiencing some form of security breach. Interestingly, the results do show a preference for security to be preinstalled and activated out-of-the-box (84%), placing a responsibility on network operators and/or manufacturers to provide sufficient controls.

Clarke NL, Symes JE, Saevanee H, Furnell SM