A revolution, please: Reforming cyber culture in higher ed

Dr Tai Durojaiye - Researcher/Information security consultant, Royal Holloway University of London
The education sector and more specifically Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), play a significant role in the development of a nation like its critical network infrastructures. HEIs hold valuable information such as research data, intellectual property and personal identifiable information of their staff, students and alumni. However, the digitalisation of HEIs’ information in the last 20 years has brought some challenges including the vulnerability to cyber-attacks, ransomware and the consequences of reputational damage and sanctions imposed by regulators. The lack of understanding and empirical research on CSC and cyber-attacks exploiting the human element among users are the problems HEIs face.
However, it is important to explore CSC because a significant amount of cyber security breaches that occur in HEIs is related to human error. By focussing and developing a strong CSC in HEIs, among users could allow them to have an awareness of cyber security issues, and threats that could be exploited by cyber-attacks. The presentation will explore UK HEI academics’ perceptions of CSC in their institutions by identifying the factors they consider to be important (or not important) for CSC. The insight from the research outcome could help to find out how to build on the understanding of CSC in HEIs. The awareness of CSC can equip the users to make informed decisions and adopt positive security behaviours, thus leading to the protection of the HEI information assets.