Mental Attitude of Ransomware among BYOD users: Awareness Framework

Abstract

Ransomware has increased its degree of corruption by striking to Bring Your Own Devices(BYOD) in the interest of acquiring money by security unconscious users over the past few months. Supposing the user does not pay up the ransom, the cyber criminals will aim in taking down a whole network via its link between BYOD devices. This paper examines the level of awareness and comprehension of BYOD users on Ransomware and investigates the established degree of security they have used to safeguard their devices. The methodology used to conduct this research was an online survey distributed through Email, Social Media and a Video sharing website. The survey was successfully completed by 150 persons securing their anonymity. The empirical results suggest that majority of respondents are unaware about the term Ransomware and those respondents who are, have no clear understanding on how it works. Therefore, in conclusion, Majority of people were previously infected by malware although they have had security software installed in their devices therefore, people must be literate to take additional security measures to protect their devices and data such as using antivirus and firewall software from ?reputable companies?, Installing mobile updates and being conscious on what you click on. Continuous awareness programs are considered to be an effective method to mitigate the risks by Ransomware.