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The purpose of this study is to increase awareness of current supply chain (SC) security-related issues by providing an extensive analysis of existing SC security solutions and their limitations. The security of SCs has received increasing attention from researchers, due to the emerging risks associated with their distributed nature. The increase in risk in SCs comes from threats that are inherently similar regardless of the type of SC, thus, requiring similar defence mechanisms. Being able to identify the types of threats will help developers to build effective defences.

In this work, we provide an analysis of the threats, possible attacks and traceability solutions for SCs, and highlight outstanding problems. Through a comprehensive literature review (2015–2021), we analysed various SC security solutions, focussing on tracking solutions. In particular, we focus on three types of SCs: digital, food and pharmaceutical that are considered prime targets for cyberattacks. We introduce a systematic categorization of threats and discuss emerging solutions for prevention and mitigation.

Our study shows that the current traceability solutions for SC systems do not offer a broadened security analysis and fail to provide extensive protection against cyberattacks. Furthermore, global SCs face common challenges, as there are still unresolved issues, especially those related to the increasing SC complexity and interconnectivity, where cyberattacks are spread across suppliers.

This is the first time that a systematic categorization of general threats for SC is made based on an existing threat model for hardware SC.

The current advancements in technologies and the internet industry provide users with many innovative digital devices for entertainment, communication and trade. However, simultaneous development and the rising sophistication of cybercrimes bring new challenges. Micro businesses use technology like how people use it at home, but face higher cyber risks during riskier transactions, with human error playing a significant role. Moreover, information security researchers have often studied individuals’ adherence to compliance behaviour in response to cyber threats. The study aims to examine the protection motivation theory (PMT)-based model to understand individuals’ tendency to adopt secure behaviours.

The study focuses on Australian micro businesses since they are more susceptible to cyberattacks due to the least security measures in place. Out of 877 questionnaires distributed online to Australian micro business owners through survey panel provider “Dynata,” 502 (N = 502) complete responses were included. Structural equational modelling was used to analyse the relationships among the variables.

The results indicate that all constructs of the protection motivation, except threat susceptibility, successfully predict the user protective behaviours. Also, increased cybersecurity costs negatively impact users’ safe cyber practices.

The study has critical implications for understanding micro business owners’ cyber security behaviours. The study contributes to the current knowledge of cyber security in micro businesses through the lens of PMT.

This research aims to understand the smartphone security behavior using protection motivation theory (PMT) and tests the current PMT model employing statistical and predictive analysis using machine learning (ML) algorithms.

This study employs a total of 241 questionnaire-based responses in a nonmandated security setting and uses multimethod approach. The research model includes both security intention and behavior making use of a valid smartphone security behavior scale. Structural equation modeling (SEM) – explanatory analysis was used in understanding the relationships. ML algorithms were employed to predict the accuracy of the PMT model in an experimental evaluation.

The results revealed that the threat-appraisal element of the PMT did not have any influence on the intention to secure smartphone while the response efficacy had a role in explaining the smartphone security intention and behavior. The ML predictive analysis showed that the protection motivation elements were able to predict smartphone security intention and behavior with an accuracy of 73%.

The findings imply that the response efficacy of the individuals be improved by cybersecurity training programs in order to enhance the protection motivation. Researchers can test other PMT models, including fear appeals to improve the predictive accuracy.

This study is the first study that makes use of theory-driven SEM analysis and data-driven ML analysis to bridge the gap between smartphone security’s theory and practice.

Despite ongoing reports of insider-driven leakage of confidential data, both academic scholars and practitioners tend to focus on external threats and favour information technology (IT)-centric solutions to secure and strengthen their information security ecosystem. Unfortunately, they pay little attention to human resource management (HRM) solutions. This paper aims to address this gap and proposes an actionable human resource (HR)-centric and artificial intelligence (AI)-driven framework.

The paper highlights the dangers posed by insider threats and presents key findings from a Leximancer-based analysis of a rapid literature review on the role, nature and contribution of HRM for information security, especially in addressing insider threats. The study also discusses the limitations of these solutions and proposes an HR-in-the-loop model, driven by AI and machine learning to mitigate these limitations.

The paper argues that AI promises to offer many HRM-centric opportunities to fortify the information security architecture if used strategically and intelligently. The HR-in-the-loop model can ensure that the human factors are considered when designing information security solutions. By combining AI and machine learning with human expertise, this model can provide an effective and comprehensive approach to addressing insider threats.

The paper fills the research gap on the critical role of HR in securing and strengthening information security. It makes further contribution in identifying the limitations of HRM solutions in info security and how AI and machine learning can be leveraged to address these limitations to some extent.

The purpose of this paper is to investigate and analyze the adoption of digital technologies in the banking industry and its impact on the rise of digital fraudulent activities, specifically focusing on online banking frauds. This paper aims to provide insights into the current technologies implemented by banks to secure their online banking systems and explores the methods used by cybercriminals to exploit security vulnerabilities in these systems.

In order to understand how digital technologies in banking can be secured against online fraud, this research conducted a systematic literature review (SLR) on digital banking, online banking fraud, and security measurements. The review encompasses a variety of sources from online databases such as Emerald Insight, Google Scholar, IEEE, JSTOR, Springer and Science Direct.

The key finding of the paper is that the adoption of digital technologies in the banking industry has led to a significant increase in digital fraudulent activities, particularly in the form of online banking frauds. This paper emphasizes that these frauds have become a global concern and have evolved into an industry where cybercriminals use sophisticated tools such as phishing attacks, denial-of-service attacks, Trojan horses, malware infections, identity theft and computer viruses.

This study relies solely on a literature review without incorporating primary data or case studies; therefore, it might miss out on the firsthand experiences and perspectives of banks and cybersecurity professionals.

This study emphasizes the need for banks to adopt advanced security measures to safeguard their online banking systems.

This study underscores the importance of ongoing training and awareness programs for both bank employees and customers.

This study specifically addresses the adoption of digital technologies in the banking industry and its correlation with the increase in digital fraudulent activities. This focus on the intersection of technology and fraud in the banking sector is a distinctive aspect. This study conducts a SLR to examine the current technologies implemented by banks to safeguard their online banking systems. This comprehensive approach provides insights into the diverse security measures used by banks to protect against various types of cyber threats.

As home users are increasingly responsible for securing their computing devices and home networks, there is a growing need to develop interventions to assist them in protecting their home networking devices, which are vulnerable to attack. To this end, this paper aims to examine the motivating factors that drive South African fibre users to protect their home networking devices.

Using the protection motivation theory as the primary framework, a measurement instrument comprising 53 questionnaire items was developed to measure 13 constructs. The study collected empirical data from a sample of 392 South African home fibre users and evaluated the research model using structural equation modelling.

The evaluation showed a good fit, with 12 out of 15 predicted hypotheses being accepted for the final research model, contributing to the understanding of the factors that motivate home users to protect their home networking devices.

To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this study is the first to model the factors that drive South African home fibre users to protect their home networking devices. Knowing these factors could help home internet service providers and security software vendors of home products to develop security interventions that could assist home fibre users to secure their home networking devices.

Enforcing employee compliance with information systems security policies (ISSP) is a herculean task for organizations as security breaches due to non-compliance continue to soar. To improve this situation, researchers have employed fear appeals that are based on protection motivation theory (PMT) to induce compliance behavior. However, extant research on fear appeals has yielded mixed findings. To help explain these mixed findings, the authors contend that efficacy formation is a cognitive process that is impacted by the cognitive load exerted by the design of fear appeal messages.

The study draws on cognitive load theory (CLT) to examine the effects of intrinsic cognitive load, extraneous cognitive load and germane cognitive load on stimulating an individual’s efficacy and coping appraisals. The authors designed a survey to collect data from 359 respondents and tested the model using partial least squares.

The analysis showed significant relationships between cognitive load (intrinsic, extraneous, and germane) and fear, maladaptive rewards, response costs, self-efficacy and response efficacy.

This provides support for the assertion that fear appeals impact the cognitive processes of individuals that then in turn can potentially affect the efficacy of fear and coping appraisals. These findings demonstrate the need to further investigate how individual cognition is impacted by fear appeal design and the resulting effects on compliance intention and behavior.

This paper aims to investigate the influence of cybersecurity awareness and compliance attitudes on the protective behaviours exhibited by employees. This study also aims to explore the complex correlation between the level of awareness about cybersecurity measures and attitudes towards compliance with these measures. Additionally, it looks at how these factors collectively impact employees’ behaviour to protect organisational assets and information.

This study uses a quantitative research methodology in which primary data are gathered using a survey questionnaire distributed to personnel employed at Vietnamese organisations. The data are analysed, and the validity of the measurement and structural equation model is assessed using a partial least squares–structural equation model approach after the collection of all the survey responses.

The provision of policies and security education, training and awareness programmes are strongly and positively associated with cybersecurity awareness. Moreover, cybersecurity awareness plays an important role in shaping attitudes and intentions towards information security policy compliance (ISPC). Attitude is positively associated with intention towards ISPC and employee protective behaviour. Finally, the intention towards ISPC is significant in shaping employee protective behaviour.

This study contributes to the understanding of the antecedents of cybersecurity in developing countries such as Vietnam. Furthermore, it provides a comprehensive framework for understanding intention and protective behaviour through cybersecurity awareness and compliance attitudes. By combining the theory of planned behaviour and protection motivation theory with institutional governance, this study extends previous research on the effects of these variables on employee protective behaviour.

Government employees must comply with policies on information security regulations, online security practices, social networking usage, internet addiction, online cyberthreats and other related habits. These activities are considered cybersecurity behaviors. Government social media (GSM) accounts are increasingly used to educate employees about cybersecurity risks. To support the effectiveness of cybersecurity practices in government organizations, the purpose of this study is to investigate the impacts of GSM and organizational policy compliance on employees’ cybersecurity awareness, motivation and behaviors.

Data were obtained by administering a questionnaire survey to public personnel in Vietnam. A total of 330 valid responses were obtained, and the research hypotheses were tested using partial least squares–structural equation modeling.

First, cybersecurity awareness enhances information protection motivation and employee protective behavior. Second, GSM has positive impacts on cybersecurity knowledge and information protection motivation. Third, there is a strong positive association between information protection motivation and employee protective behavior. Finally, while organizational compliance significantly increases cybersecurity awareness, its impact on employee protective behavior is ind irect.

This research enhances the literature on the behavioral dimension of cybersecurity. The primary objective of this study is to assess the influence of cybersecurity awareness on protective behaviors rather than intents and attitudes alone. Furthermore, this research integrates protection motivation theory and cultivation theory to provide a more thorough assessment of cybersecurity awareness and protective behavior. By investigating the impact of GSM on the level of cybersecurity awareness among employees within government organizations, this study provides valuable insights into the efficacy of recent governmental initiatives aimed at fostering cybersecurity.

The European Union (EU) and Russia are considered to be trapped into security concerns in a form of spillover, in a zero sum perspective, considering each step of the other as directed against another. Such an approach seems to prevail, after attempts of engagements for decades after the Cold War. Rather history prevailed in informing perceptions and currently driving the behaviors toward each other, in other words in othering each other.

Discourse analysis

The move in Eastern Europe of both parties is perceived with suspicion from both sides, materialized through their policies, culminated in clash of interests and crash of policies between both parts, manifested by Russian aggression in Ukraine in 2014 and recently in 2022 in one side, and the EU response through massive, unprecedented sanctions against Russia. This has created a context that fosters not just keeping a status quo of clash and struggle for influence between them in the region, but also nourishes further securitization of their respective policies toward the Eastern Europe and beyond. In 2014 and more recently in 2022 Russian aggression in Ukraine, the EU and Russia appear to have the same image to each other as they had during the Cold War, or even beyond. Having this in mind, this paper will address those developments, with particular focus on attempts to avoid them, the failure to do so and how they are impacting the EU, Russia and global politics in a form of emerging new world (dis)order.

This paper is an original paper having a critical approach toward the current conflicts going on in Eastern Europe.