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Does security attitude really predict susceptibility to persuasion tactics in social engineering attempts?

Aya Muhanad,Tourjana Islam Supti,Israa Abuelezz,A. Yankouskaya,Khaled M. Khan,Mahmoud Barhamgi,A. Nhlabatsi,R. Ali

Published 2025 in Information & Computer Security

ABSTRACT

Purpose This study aims to investigate whether an individual’s security attitude (SA) predicts susceptibility to persuasion in social engineering (SE) attempts. Design/methodology/approach This paper examined susceptibility to Cialdini’s six principles of persuasion in SE contexts. Three hundred twenty-three participants from the United Kingdom and 329 from Arab Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries were surveyed. Participants were presented with 12 scenarios involving a request to download an app from a member of a social media group, six persuasive scenarios and six neutral counterparts. The six-item security attitude scale (SA-6) measured participants’ attitudes towards security practices. Findings Some positive correlations were found between SA and vulnerability to specific persuasion principles. Regression analyses indicated that SA was a significant predictor of vulnerability. Notably, higher SA was associated with slightly increased vulnerability in all significant models. Practical implications These findings highlight the need for effective strategies to resist SE attacks involving immunity to persuasion tactics. Individuals with higher SAs may be overconfident and underestimating risks. Originality/value The effect of persuasion was uniquely distilled and measured by the difference between the impact of the persuasion scenario and its neutral version, representing a method novelty. Furthermore, it includes a sample from the Arab GCC, an often-neglected population in research. The paper is the first to compare SA, related to security knowledge-seeking and following security recommendations, with psychological immunity to persuasion in a security context.

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