The impact of a Canadian financial cybercrime prevention campaign on clients’ sense of security

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of a cybercrime prevention campaign that was run by a Canadian financial institution. More specifically, we examined how participants/clients perceived the financial institution’s initiative to inform them about cybercrimes. The study also explored whether or not the campaign had the desired effect, which was to reinforce the clients’ sense of security. This campaign took place on October 2018 and 1452 adults (831 males and 621 females) participated in the online web survey. The results indicated that the prevention campaign had been positively perceived by most of the respondents (93.2%). However, only a low percentage of individuals (18%) had seen the poster/campaign prior to the completion of the survey while the majority (82%) accessed the prevention campaign’s components during the survey. Further analysis has shown no gender differences in participants’ responses. In general, participants felt that the campaign has increased their sense of security, especially among older individuals (55 years old and over). Most participants have expressed an interest in receiving more information on cybercrime and how to take actions on protecting one’s self. Results suggest that it would be advisable to conduct targeted prevention campaigns in order to reach out to as many people as possible. Discussion also includes practical recommendations based on the results and the review of the literature.