A study of online users' cyber threat awareness and their use of threat countermeasures

The internet has permeated the lives of the modern men in more respects than can be tabulated simply. The ease of access to online shopping, social networking, simplified communication, etc. make the internet a modern panacea for a number of problems. However, the internet also opens up avenues that expose the user to vulnerabilities at the hand of hackers and malicious software coders. The use of the internet to exchange personal and fiscal information makes attacks all the more inviting. This is compounded by the fact that most online users are unaware of threats that affect them on a daily basis and how to protect themselves against such threats. Despite the fact that the level of awareness of the contemporary cyber threats, has significantly increased among online users within the last few years, there is a growing need to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the countermeasures currently being used. Fortunately, there are a number of Human Computer Interaction (HCI) principles that can effectively be used to enhance online user interaction and reduce internet security threats