Exploration of The Impact of Cyber Situational Awareness On Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia

The objective of this study is to explore the cyber situational awareness (CSA) level among the employees of small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) in Malaysia, by extending Endsley's situation awareness (SA) theory. It is crucial to understand the level of cyber situational awareness among e...

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Main Authors: Tan Chee Keong, Sofiah Kadar Khan, Umar Farooq Khattak
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MMU Press 2025-02-01
Series:Journal of Informatics and Web Engineering
Subjects:
Online Access:https://journals.mmupress.com/index.php/jiwe/article/view/1308
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author Tan Chee Keong
Sofiah Kadar Khan
Umar Farooq Khattak
author_facet Tan Chee Keong
Sofiah Kadar Khan
Umar Farooq Khattak
author_sort Tan Chee Keong
collection DOAJ
description The objective of this study is to explore the cyber situational awareness (CSA) level among the employees of small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) in Malaysia, by extending Endsley's situation awareness (SA) theory. It is crucial to understand the level of cyber situational awareness among employees as it sheds light on how well the employees understand the cyber threats and if they can handle them effectively. Literature has reviewed that SMEs are subject to a greater danger of cyber-attacks. Therefore, employees' awareness of cyber situations is of the utmost significance in studying cyber security. A convenient non-probability sampling method was chosen due to less expensive to deploy and increase the efficiency of data collection processes. IBM SPSS was used to conduct descriptive exploration data analysis that provides insight into the employee's current CSA by categorizing the employees into good, average, and poor understanding of the CSA. A total of 443 surveys were collected in the study, the findings reveal that most employees are not adequately aware of cyber situations, and employees understand the need to adhere to cyber security policy within the organization but fail to comply. The study contributes to practical domain by identifying the current level of CSA, SMEs should be set forth to create a strong culture of cyber security awareness and compliance and prioritize cyber security as part of the organization's culture to improve overall employee engagement and motivation in dealing with cyber threats.
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spelling doaj-art-5a536a65a6fa428dac0edac148fcda122025-08-20T02:14:46ZengMMU PressJournal of Informatics and Web Engineering2821-370X2025-02-014129230610.33093/jiwe.2025.4.1.211308Exploration of The Impact of Cyber Situational Awareness On Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in MalaysiaTan Chee Keong0https://orcid.org/0009-0001-7151-7926Sofiah Kadar Khan1Umar Farooq Khattak2UNITAR International University, MalaysiaUNITAR International University, MalaysiaUNITAR International University, MalaysiaThe objective of this study is to explore the cyber situational awareness (CSA) level among the employees of small and medium-sized enterprises (SME) in Malaysia, by extending Endsley's situation awareness (SA) theory. It is crucial to understand the level of cyber situational awareness among employees as it sheds light on how well the employees understand the cyber threats and if they can handle them effectively. Literature has reviewed that SMEs are subject to a greater danger of cyber-attacks. Therefore, employees' awareness of cyber situations is of the utmost significance in studying cyber security. A convenient non-probability sampling method was chosen due to less expensive to deploy and increase the efficiency of data collection processes. IBM SPSS was used to conduct descriptive exploration data analysis that provides insight into the employee's current CSA by categorizing the employees into good, average, and poor understanding of the CSA. A total of 443 surveys were collected in the study, the findings reveal that most employees are not adequately aware of cyber situations, and employees understand the need to adhere to cyber security policy within the organization but fail to comply. The study contributes to practical domain by identifying the current level of CSA, SMEs should be set forth to create a strong culture of cyber security awareness and compliance and prioritize cyber security as part of the organization's culture to improve overall employee engagement and motivation in dealing with cyber threats.https://journals.mmupress.com/index.php/jiwe/article/view/1308cyber securitysmall and medium-sized enterprisescyber situation awarenesscyber threatscyber protection behavior
spellingShingle Tan Chee Keong
Sofiah Kadar Khan
Umar Farooq Khattak
Exploration of The Impact of Cyber Situational Awareness On Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia
Journal of Informatics and Web Engineering
cyber security
small and medium-sized enterprises
cyber situation awareness
cyber threats
cyber protection behavior
title Exploration of The Impact of Cyber Situational Awareness On Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia
title_full Exploration of The Impact of Cyber Situational Awareness On Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia
title_fullStr Exploration of The Impact of Cyber Situational Awareness On Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia
title_full_unstemmed Exploration of The Impact of Cyber Situational Awareness On Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia
title_short Exploration of The Impact of Cyber Situational Awareness On Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Malaysia
title_sort exploration of the impact of cyber situational awareness on small and medium enterprises smes in malaysia
topic cyber security
small and medium-sized enterprises
cyber situation awareness
cyber threats
cyber protection behavior
url https://journals.mmupress.com/index.php/jiwe/article/view/1308
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AT sofiahkadarkhan explorationoftheimpactofcybersituationalawarenessonsmallandmediumenterprisessmesinmalaysia
AT umarfarooqkhattak explorationoftheimpactofcybersituationalawarenessonsmallandmediumenterprisessmesinmalaysia