Computer Security Awareness of Accounting Students

Accountants store personal and financial data of clients on computers. The loss or exposure of this data can have devastating consequences for the client and the business. Are students preparing to work in a field that often has access to an individual’s social security number, bank account routing numbers, and company financial records, prepared to keep that data secure through common computer security practices? This paper analyzes the responses of a group of accounting students to a computer security survey. The survey was developed to investigate the security awareness and practices of college students. The results of this study indicate that accounting students may not be sufficiently prepared to help safeguard sensitive data and resources as they become practicing accountants