Date of Conferral

2022

Degree

Doctor of Information Technology (D.I.T.)

School

Information Systems and Technology

Advisor

Gary Griffith

Abstract

As the information and technology age becomes more advanced, digital privacy flaws have become more challenging. Information technology (IT) security managers, chief information security officers, and other stakeholders in banks are concerned with identity-based authentication attacks because identity-theft attacks cause data breaches. Grounded in the protection motivation theory, the purpose of this qualitative pragmatic study was to examine strategies IT security professionals working on internet banking platforms use to mitigate identity-based authentication attacks. The study participants comprised five IT security professionals currently working in the online banking industry from the northeastern United States with at least 5 years of experience handling digital banking platforms. Data were collected from interviews with five IT security professionals and publicly accessible documents such as NIST documents and industry standards. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Five major themes emerged from the analysis: comprehensive user authentication, importance of data encryption, system audits, intrusion detection systems, and comprehensive user policies. A key recommendation is to train all users on secure usage of the bank’s digital transaction platform by providing mandatory privacy protection training and security awareness to users before they successfully create or access financial accounts. The implications for positive social change include the potential to increase the number of users to effectively use cybersecurity policies, techniques, tools, and training designed to protect their online banking accounts from identity-based authentication attacks.

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