Location
Hilton Waikoloa Village, Hawaii
Event Website
https://hicss.hawaii.edu/
Start Date
7-1-2025 12:00 AM
End Date
10-1-2025 12:00 AM
Description
Cyberattacks pose a significant risk for organizations. As employees are often the primary target of cyberattacks, they are an organization's last line of defense. Incentives can be used to motivate employees to engage in cybersecurity. However, the lack of a consolidated framework for positive cybersecurity incentives, such as rewards, hinders decision-makers from identifying suitable incentives and adapting them to their organizational needs. This can lead to limited motivational effects, inefficient resource use, and inconsistent outcomes. To address this research gap, we developed a taxonomy of positive cybersecurity incentives from a systematic review of 46 papers and insights from 15 cybersecurity decision-makers. This taxonomy provides a comprehensive knowledge base and structured framework for categorizing and designing cybersecurity incentives, aiming to increase their effectiveness. The 15 cybersecurity decision-makers evaluated the taxonomy and showed very high inter-rater agreement, and we created an interactive version to enhance its applicability.
Recommended Citation
Reittinger, Tobias and Pernul, Günther, "A Taxonomy of Positive Incentives to Motivate Cybersecurity Behaviors" (2025). Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences 2025 (HICSS-58). 6.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/hicss-58/in/behavioral_is_security/6
A Taxonomy of Positive Incentives to Motivate Cybersecurity Behaviors
Hilton Waikoloa Village, Hawaii
Cyberattacks pose a significant risk for organizations. As employees are often the primary target of cyberattacks, they are an organization's last line of defense. Incentives can be used to motivate employees to engage in cybersecurity. However, the lack of a consolidated framework for positive cybersecurity incentives, such as rewards, hinders decision-makers from identifying suitable incentives and adapting them to their organizational needs. This can lead to limited motivational effects, inefficient resource use, and inconsistent outcomes. To address this research gap, we developed a taxonomy of positive cybersecurity incentives from a systematic review of 46 papers and insights from 15 cybersecurity decision-makers. This taxonomy provides a comprehensive knowledge base and structured framework for categorizing and designing cybersecurity incentives, aiming to increase their effectiveness. The 15 cybersecurity decision-makers evaluated the taxonomy and showed very high inter-rater agreement, and we created an interactive version to enhance its applicability.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/hicss-58/in/behavioral_is_security/6