1. Students’ Perceived Ethical Severity of e-Learning Security Attacks
By:
Yair Levy, Ph.D. Nova Southeastern University Graduate School of Computer and Information Sciences
and
Michelle M. Ramim, Ph.D.
Nova Southeastern University
Huizenga School of Business and Entrepreneurship

2. Theoretical background Methodology and sample Results Conclusions
Outline
Introduction
Objective
Theoretical background
Methodology and sample
Results
Conclusions

3. Introduction Growing use e-learning beyond higher education
Career technical education
Medical education
Corporate and military training
K–12 education
96% of 2-year and 4-year public higher education institutions provide some form of e-learning courses (U.S. Department of education, 2009)
Challenge- provide a secured and accountable e-learning environment
Valid authentication of users is a perpetual challenge amongst organizations

4. Introduction (Cont.)
Strategic efforts to reduce cyber-security treats (Obama calls for cyber czar, 2009)
A surge in incidents of unethical behavior reported in the U.S. news media (Cyberspace threats and Vulnerabilities, US Cert-gov)
Cyber-security incidents have climbed sharply, particularly after 9/11/2001
NIMDA warm, Code Red
Only small percentage of such sophisticated attacks are reported to the public

5. Majority hackers were found to be below the age of 30 (Harris, 2004)
Introduction (Cont.)
A need for a strategy to increase awareness and reduce cyber-security treats (EDUCAUSE)
Majority hackers were found to be below the age of 30 (Harris, 2004)
Nowadays, students are more technology savvy and may explore unethical actions under stress, including cyber attacks

6. Objectives
Investigate users’ perceptions about unethical behaviors, specifically e-learning security attacks
Some evidence from literature indicating that gender, age, and academic rank may have implications on ethical severity (Cronan et al., 2006; Ramim, 2007)
the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (2008) has reported that financial loss resulting from such crimes has been mounting and exceeding $1.2 billion annually. Business organizations and government agencies have been motivated to identify and adopt advanced identification technologies (James et al., 2006; Wang et al., 2008).

7. Theoretical Background
Ethical behavior is gender dependent (Cronan et al., 2006; Dorantes, Hewitt, & Goles, 2006; Kreie & Cronan, 1998)
Males appear to be less ethically driven
Females appear to be more ethically driven
Age and academic rank were also found to show differences related to perceptions about ethical behaviors (Kreie & Cronan, 1998)
Very little research has been done about such differences in the context of e-learning cyber-security attacks

8. Create awareness about e-learning security
Focus
Investigate students’ perceptions about the severity level of key e-learning security attacks
Create awareness about e-learning security
If students perceive the severity of key e-learning security attacks (eLSAs) to be low, then they might be more likely to engage or seek help in engaging on their behalf in such unethical behavior

9. Methodology and Sample
Five key security attacks were investigated:
Attack to the server
Intercepting s (reading, altering, blocking, and/or deleting s sent to someone else)
Unauthorized file sharing
Unauthorized access
Spoofing attack (impersonating as someone else to falsify data)

10. Methodology and Sample (Cont.)
Table 1: The five e-learning security attacks
The scale: 1 2 3 4 5
Ethical
Somewhat unethical
Slightly unethical
Unethical
Very unethical
Student is:
<-- Less ethical
More ethical -->

11. Methodology and Sample (Cont.)
1,100 students attending online courses, both at the undergraduate and graduate level during Fall 2006 to Fall 2009
519 responses, represents about 47% response rate

12. Methodology and Sample (Cont.)
Table 2. Descriptive Statistics of Study Participants (N=519)

13. Four Research Questions
RQ1: How severe do students perceive e-learning security attacks?
RQ2: Are there significant differences between males and females on their perceived ethical severity of e-learning security attacks?
RQ3: Are there significant differences between undergraduate and graduate students on their perceived ethical severity of e-learning security attacks?
RQ4: Are there significant differences between students’ age groups on their perceived ethical severity of e-learning security attacks?

14. Results
Majority of the students appears to self-report their perceptions as ethically driven across all five e-learning security attacks
The overall percentage of students reported, either ‘4’ (unethical) and ‘5’ (very unethical) when asked to rate their ethical severity about the five e-learning security attacks, was very high (90% on average) with:
Highest: (eLSA2) Intercepting 95%
Lowest: (eLSA3) Unauthorized file 85%

15. Results (Cont.)
Majority of the students appear to understand the ethical severity of these e-learning security attacks
A small percentage (3.3% on average), reported either ‘1’ (ethical) and ‘2’ (somewhat ethical) when asked to rate their ethical severity about the five e-learning security attacks
Highest: (eLSA3) Unauthorized file ~6%
Lowest: (eLSA2) Intercepting ~2%

16. Results (Cont.)
Significant (p<0.005) gender differences exist only for eLSA3 Unauthorized file sharing
Overall across all five items (eLSA1- eLSA5), the results indicated that in regards to perceived ethical severity of e-learning security attacks males find these attacks less severe than females

17. Results (Cont.)
Significant (p<0.001) age level differences exist only for eLSA1 (Initiating a cyber-attack on the e-learning server)
Overall across all five items (eLSA1- eLSA5), the results indicated that graduate students appear to report these e-learning security attacks slightly higher (more severe) than undergraduate students

18. Results (Cont.)
Significant age level differences for all items with eLSA1, eLSA3, eLSA5 (p<0.001), eLSA2 (p<0.01), and eLSA5 (p=0.01)
Overall across all five items (eLSA1- eLSA5), the results indicated in regards to perceived ethical severity of e-learning security attacks, there is an increase trend where the older the student is, the more severe s/he ranks the attacks

19. A sample of 519 students attending e-learning courses in the U.S.
Conclusions
A sample of 519 students attending e-learning courses in the U.S.
Majority (~90%) of the students appear to self-report their perceptions as ethically driven across all the five e-learning security attacks
It appears that the majority of the students do understand the ethical severity of these e-learning security attacks

20. In general, males find security attacks less severe than females
Conclusions (Cont.)
Small percentage (3.3%) of the students reported specific security attacks to be ethical
file sharing scored the highest (~6%)
In general, males find security attacks less severe than females
It appears that males are more risk takers
Females tend to be risk averse than males
Undergraduate students appear to perceive attacks only slightly less severe than graduate students

21. Conclusions (Cont.)
The older the student is, the more severe s/he ranks the attacks – i.e. more ethical
Young male students, appear to find the e-learning security attacks significantly less ethically severe or not severe at all
Younger students entering technical educational programs also learn how to conduct some of these exact security attacks – need for additional research!

22. Thank you!
Questions/comments?
Thank you all for attending!

23. Contact Information - Michelle
Michelle M. Ramim, Ph.D. Part-time Professor Nova Southeastern University
Huizenga School of Business and Entrepreneurship
The DeSantis Building
3301 College Avenue
Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33314
Site:

24. Contact Information - Yair
Yair Levy, Ph.D. Associate Professor Nova Southeastern University Graduate School of Computer and Information Sciences The DeSantis Building - Room College Avenue Fort Lauderdale, FL Tel.:         Fax:
Site: