Are Users as Smart as their Smart Phones?

In the 21st century you can see smart phones everywhere around you. As cliché s it is, hackers see this too. But where you or I might see nothing but your friends ignoring you to check Facebook or Clash of Clans a hacker sees nothing but more opportunities to strike. Think about the sensitive information you have stored on your phone! Are you, and is everyone else around you on their phone, protecting that data correctly? In 2012, a group of researchers from the University of South Australia proceeded to ask and attempt to answer this question.

The Research
The researchers acquired a sample of 250 mobile users of varying ages and backgrounds. They proceeded to survey the participants in, what they deemed, the five major areas of mobile security. This includes general security (such as theft), security against malware, unauthorized access, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth security, and handling phishing attacks as well. While the most common uses for smart phones among the participants were SMS and phone calls, it is interesting to note that banking and purchasing applications was also very popular. Obviously social media and general internet browsing were on the third and fourth most popular items, the research identified that it was mainly the younger participants were the ones that heavily used their mobile devices for these two purposes.

The Results
Not too shockingly, the research found that a majority of their participants exhibited unsafe behaviors in their smart phone usage. In the study, more than half the participants failed to use any type of locking mechanism for their phone and when they did, they utilized a four digit pin only, which is, in reality, extremely vulnerable to brute force hacking techniques. While most participants were disciplined in not installing apps or accepting downloads from unauthorized sources, only 16 percent of participants actively used malware detection or removal apps. Only a small percentage of users exhibited poor behavior in responding to phishing attacks and when it came to Wi-fi security only 16 percent of users admitted to connecting to unknown Wi-fi networks. Not too surprisingly, the study confirmed that participants who exhibited risky behavior in one aspect were more likely to exhibit risky behavior in other areas.

What It Means
In their own conclusion, the researchers mention the routine activity theory (RAT) and its proposal about victim suitability. RAT proposes that one of the main factors in criminal activity is that crime occurs when “a suitable target is in the presence of a motivated offender and without a capable guardian” (J. Imgraben et al). The key here is that smart phone users need to limit their exposure to “motivated offenders” by reducing the opportunity for them to become a “suitable target”. Enabling user authentication, more so than just a simple 4-digit pin, can greatly reduce criminal motivation, even if your phone is lost or stolen. The researchers indicated that certain apps can reduce criminal acts by increasing the likelihood of getting caught and reducing the rewards of offending. Installing anti-malware applications, remote wiping apps, or even a simple locating app in the event of a lost or stolen phone are key ways of doing both of the above. The researchers concluded that many users are simply unaware of the risks they are taking in their behaviors. They even concluded that there is a suitable market creating incentives for smart device usage and technology that limits risk and/or crime.



James Imgraben, Alewyn Engelbrecht & Kim-Kwang Raymond Choo (2014) Always connected, but are smart mobile users getting more security savvy? A survey of smart mobile device users, Behaviour & Information Technology, 33:12, 1347-1360, DOI: 10.1080/0144929X.2014.934286