2015-01 Meta Analysis

Social engineering and anti-phishing interventions

Keywords: Cybercrime, Cyber Security, Social Engineering, Phishing
Date: December 18, 2014
Teachers: Prof dr. M. Junger
JW Bullee? / Lastdrager?

We are looking for a master student with an interest in cybercrime and cyber security.

Background

Social engineering, in the context of information security, refers to psychological manipulation of people into performing actions that will divulge confidential information, usually account information (e.g. login, passwords). In the digital world phishing emails are one of the most used methods for criminals to try to collect account information to try to steal or extort money. For many users recognizing an email as a fraudulent mail is not easy. Accordingly, many attempts have been done to help users to become more digi-savvy in order to recognise phishing attempts and not fall for them.

Project

For a European project (http://www.trespass-project.eu/) we want to conduct a meta-analysis of the effectiveness of interventions that aim to teach users not to fall for phishing. We want to conduct a systematic search of all interventions, worldwide, code these interventions in a database, and analyse the findings. We will follow the instructions of the Campbell collaboration for systematic reviews. A meta-analysis is an ambitious project that brings together a lot of information and takes time. But at the same time it is very useful summary of scientific knowledge. It fits well with an ambitious student thinking about doing a PhD.

Contact: M. Junger RA 3351
E-mail: M.Junger@Utwente.nl