Evaluation of Contextual and Game-Based Training for Phishing Detection

Kävrestad, Joakim; Hagberg, Allex; Nohlberg, Marcus; Rambusch, Jana; Roos, Robert; Furnell, Steven

Abstract

Cybersecurity is a pressing matter, and a lot of the responsibility for cybersecurity is put on the individual user. The individual user is expected to engage in secure behavior by selecting good passwords, identifying malicious emails, and more. Typical support for users comes from Information Security Awareness Training (ISAT), which makes the effectiveness of ISAT a key cybersecurity issue. This paper presents an evaluation of how two promising methods for ISAT support users in acheiving secure behavior using a simulated experiment with 41 participants. The methods were game-based training, where users learn by playing a game, and Context-Based Micro-Training (CBMT), where users are presented with short information in a situation where the information is of direct relevance. Participants were asked to identify phishing emails while their behavior was monitored using eye-tracking technique. The research shows that both training methods can support users towards secure behavior and that CBMT does so to a higher degree than game-based training. The research further shows that most participants were susceptible to phishing, even after training, which suggests that training alone is insufficient to make users behave securely. Consequently, future research ideas, where training is combined with other support systems, are proposed.

Citation

Kävrestad, J., Hagberg, A., Nohlberg, M., Rambusch, J., Roos, R., & Furnell, S. (2022). Evaluation of Contextual and Game-Based Training for Phishing Detection. Future Internet, 14(4), Article 104. https://doi.org/10.3390/fi14040104

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Mar 22, 2022
• Online Publication Date: Mar 25, 2022
• Publication Date: Apr 1, 2022
• Deposit Date: Mar 29, 2022
• Publicly Available Date: Mar 29, 2022
• Journal: Future Internet
• Electronic ISSN: 1999-5903
• Publisher: MDPI AG
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 14
• Issue: 4
• Article Number: 104
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/fi14040104
• Keywords: Computer Networks and Communications
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/7655526
• Publisher URL: https://www.mdpi.com/1999-5903/14/4/104