ETHICAL PERSPECTIVES IN MITIGATING HUMAN FACTORS IN CYBERSECURITY
Keywords:
human factors, cybersecurity, ethics, privacy, insider threat, TrainingAbstract
The issue of cybersecurity is of high importance in the digital age, and human factors remain the most vulnerable element despite significant technological progress. Even the strongest security systems can be compromised by human error, negligence, insider threats, and ethical breaches. This proposed study examines the ethical challenges associated with mitigating human factors in cybersecurity, with particular emphasis on the impact of ethical awareness, training, and policy compliance on safe behavior among users and professionals. The primary aim of the study is to examine how ethical practices contribute to addressing human-related cybersecurity threats and to propose strategies for fostering ethical responsibility within organizations. The research relies on secondary quantitative data drawn from existing empirical studies and institutional reports on the relationship between ethical interventions and the reduction of human-related cybersecurity breaches between 2020 and 2024. The findings reveal a strong negative relationship between ethics training and the frequency of cybersecurity breaches (R² = 0.67), highlighting the significance of institutionalized ethics governance. Based on these findings, the study recommends mandatory periodic ethics training, transparent accountability frameworks, and the integration of ethics into cybersecurity education and professional development programs.
References
L. A. Jones, "Unveiling Human Factors: Aligning Facets of Cybersecurity Leadership, Insider Threats, and Arsonist Attributes to Reduce Cyber Risk," Socio Economic Challenges, vol. 8, no. 2, 2024.
S. N. Tambe-Jagtap, "Human-Centric Cybersecurity: Understanding and Mitigating the Role of Human Error in Cyber Incidents," SHIFRA, vol. (2023), pp. 53–59, 2023.
C. Nobles, "Stress, burnout, and security fatigue in cybersecurity: A human factors problem," Holistica Journal of Business and Public Administration, vol. 13, no. 1, pp. 49–72, 2022. doi: 10.2478/hjbpa-2022-0003.
I. Alhasan, "Human factors in cybersecurity: A cross-cultural study on trust," Ph.D. dissertation, Dept. of Technology, Purdue Univ., West Lafayette, IN, 2023.
M. Kaur, M. van Eeten, M. Janssen, K. Borgolte, and T. Fiebig, "Human Factors in Security Research: Lessons Learned from 2008–2018," arXiv:2103.13287v1 [cs.CY], 2021.
M. M. Quchi, M. Hakimi, and A. W. Fazil, "Human factors in cybersecurity: An in depth analysis of user centric studies," Jurnal Ilmiah Multidisiplin Indonesia (JIM-ID), vol. 3, no. 01, 2024. doi: 10.58471/esaprom.v3i01.
I. Momoh, G. Adelaja, and G. Ejiwumi, "Analysis of the Human Factor in Cybersecurity: Identifying and Preventing Social Engineering Attacks in Financial Institution," Dept. of Computing & Informatics, Bournemouth Univ., U.K., 2023. DOI:10.13140/RG.2.2.35640.52489.
T. R. McEvoy and S. J. Kowalski, "Deriving Cyber Security Risks from Human and Organizational Factors - A Socio-technical Approach," Complex Systems Informatics and Modeling Quarterly (CSIMQ), no. 18, pp. 47–64, Mar./Apr. 2019. doi: 10.7250/csimq.2019-18.03.
C. Colwill, "Human factors in information security: The insider threat - Who can you trust these days?," Information Security Technical Report, vol. 14, pp. 186–196, 2009.
R. R. Gopireddy and A. Bodipudi, "Human-Centric Cybersecurity: Addressing the Human Element in Cyber Defense and Ethical Considerations in Cybersecurity," J. Artif. Intell. Cloud Comput., 2022.
J. O. Oladipo, C. C. Okoye, O. A. Elufioye, T. Falaiye, and E. E. Nwankwo, "Human factors in cybersecurity: Navigating the fintech landscape," Int. J. Sci. Res. Archive, vol. 11, no. 01, pp. 1959–1967, Feb. 2024, doi: 10.30574/ijsra.2024.11.1.0258.
P. K. Makanto and J. S. Eze, "Mitigating Human Vulnerabilities in Cybersecurity: Understanding Human Flaws and Implementing Effective Countermeasures," Dept. Comput. Informatics, Bournemouth Univ., Bournemouth, UK, 2022.
W. J. Triplett, "Addressing Human Factors in Cybersecurity Leadership," J. Cybersecur. Priv., vol. 2, no. 3, pp. 573–586, Jul. 2022, doi: 10.3390/jcp2030029.
P. Abubakari, "Human Factors Matter: The Intersection of Cybersecurity, Governance, And Culture In Risk Management Of Critical Infrastructure," D.B.A. dissertation, Graziadio School of Business, Pepperdine Univ., Malibu, CA, 2024.
J. W. Harper, "Cybersecurity: A Review of Human-Based Behavior and Best Practices To Mitigate Risk," D.S.I.T. research paper, School of Computing, Middle Georgia State Univ., Macon, GA, 2023.
A. Pollini et al., "Leveraging human factors in cybersecurity: An integrated methodological approach," Cogn. Technol. Work, vol. 24, pp. 371–390, Jun. 2021, doi: 10.1007/s10111-021-00683-y.
K. Khadka and A. B. Ullah, "Human factors in cybersecurity: An interdisciplinary review and framework proposal," Int. J. Inf. Secur., vol. 24, p. 119, Apr. 2025, doi: 10.1007/s10207-025-01032-0.
W. P. Wong, H. C. Tan, K. H. Tan, and M.-L. Tseng, "Human factors in information leakage: Mitigation strategies for information sharing integrity," Ind. Manag. Data Syst., vol. 119, no. 6, pp. 1242–1267, 2019, doi: 10.1108.