Investigating the Relationships Between SNS Usage, Personal Information Disclosure, and Cybersecurity

Abstract

As social networking sites (SNSs) become ubiquitous for daily activities, users and regulators have raised concerns with the state of digital privacy and security. Cyberattacks on SNSs have exposed private data of millions of users, and cybersecurity threats propagate through social engineering over SNSs. To determine whether frequent SNS users who disclose personal information are at greater risk of cyberattacks, I conducted a hybrid survey-interview study measuring the correlations between personal information disclosure, SNS usage, cybersecurity practices, and past experiences with cybersecurity threats. The survey findings (n = 275) suggest that SNS usage frequency and usage for MNPS (meeting new people and socializing) or MEPO (make, express, or present more popular oneself) purposes have positive correlations to personal information disclosure. SNS usage frequency and personal information disclosure also had positive correlations with experienced cybersecurity threats, but little correlation with cybersecurity behavior. Interview responses highlighted how subjects experienced cybersecurity threats within SNSs.