Measuring the information security risk in an infrastructure

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ferenc Leitold ◽  
Kalman Hadarics ◽  
Eszter Oroszi ◽  
Krisztina Gyorffy
Keyword(s):  
Information Security ◽  
Security Risk ◽  
Information Security Risk

E-waste information security protection motivation: the role of optimism bias

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hao Chen ◽  
Ofir Turel ◽  
Yufei Yuan
Keyword(s):  
Information Security ◽  
Risk Behavior ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Perceived Threat ◽  
Protection Motivation ◽  
Security Risk ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Optimism Bias ◽  
Information Security Risk

PurposeElectronic waste (e-waste) such as discarded computers and smartphones may contain large amounts of confidential data. Improper handling of remaining information in e-waste can, therefore, drive information security risk. This risk, however, is not always properly assessed and managed. The authors take the protection motivation theory (PMT) lens of analysis to understand intentions to protect one's discarded electronic assets.Design/methodology/approachBy applying structural equation modeling, the authors empirically tested the proposed model with survey data from 348 e-waste handling users.FindingsResults highlight that (1) protection intention is influenced by the perceived threat of discarding untreated e-waste (a threat appraisal) and self-efficacy to treat the discarded e-waste (a coping appraisal) and (2) optimism bias plays a dual-role in a direct and moderating way to reduce the perceived threat of untreated e-waste and its effect on protection intentions.Originality/valueResults support the assertions and portray a unique theoretical account of the processes that underline people's motivation to protect their data when discarding e-waste. As such, this study explains a relatively understudied information security risk behavior in the e-waste context, points to the role of optimism bias in such decisions and highlights potential interventions that can help to alleviate this information security risk behavior.

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