Assessing the Information Security Awareness of University Students

The threat of universities being attacked by hackers has increased steadily in recent years. Since users are the attackers\u27 favorite target, students are also a potential victim of these attacks. This paper presents the results of a study that examined the information security awareness of students at a German university. An extensive analysis identified relevant topics which have to be considered when sensitizing students for information security. First, interviews with students were conducted (qualitative analysis). Second, the hypotheses have been verified in a questionnaire (quantitative analysis). The analysis results in a need for increasing information security awareness in the areas of changing initial passwords, not using USB drives, knowledge about anti-virus systems, and reporting security incidents to the ITdepartment