Optimism bias in susceptibility to phishing attacks:an empirical study

PurposeResearchers looking for ways to change the insecure behaviour that results in phishing have considered multiple possible reasons for such behaviour. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to understand the role of optimism bias (OB – defined as a cognitive bias), which characterises overly optimistic or unrealistic individuals, to ensure secure behaviour. Research that focused on issues such as personality traits, trust, attitude and Security, Education, Training and Awareness (SETA) was considered.Design/methodology/approachThis study built on a recontextualized version of the theory of planned behaviour to evaluate the influence that optimism bias has on phishing susceptibility. To model the data, an analysis was performed on 226 survey responses from a South African financial services organisation using partial least squares (PLS) path modelling.FindingsThis study found that overly optimistic employees were inclined to behave insecurely, while factors such as attitude and trust significantly influenced the intention to behave securely.Practical implicationsOur contribution to practice seeks to enhance the effectiveness of SETA by identifying and addressing the optimism bias weakness to deliver a more successful training outcome.Originality/valueOur study enriches the Information Systems literature by evaluating the effect of a cognitive bias on phishing susceptibility and offers a contextual explanation of the resultant behaviour

Personal participation and trials in absentia: a comparative constitutional law perspective

The purpose of this essay is to provide a comparative overview focusing on the attitude of some legal orders towards trials in absentia in order to determine whether the US and European constitutionalism had an impact on the framing of these principles in the various legal orders. Particularly, it is argued that, in the absence of any black-or-white distinction, the dichotomy between common law and civil law systems would not provide an appropriate perspective to capture the existence of different attitudes between the understanding of personal participation as a duty and as a right

Endocrine Disruptors and Health Effects in Africa: A Call for Action

Africa faces a number of unique environmental challenges. Unfortunately, it lacks the infrastructure needed to support the comprehensive environmental studies that could provide the scientific basis to inform environmental policies. There are a number of known sources of endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs) and other hazardous chemicals in Africa. However, a coordinated approach to identify and monitor these contaminants and to develop strategies for public health interventions has not yet been made.This commentary summarizes the scientific evidence presented by experts at the First African Endocrine Disruptors meeting. We describe a "call to action" to utilize the available scientific knowledge to address the impact of EDCs on human and wildlife health in Africa.We identify existing knowledge gaps about exposures to EDCs in Africa and describe how well-designed research strategies are needed to address these gaps. A lack of resources for research and a lag in policy implementation slows down intervention strategies and poses a challenge to advancing future health in Africa.To address the many challenges posed by EDCs, we argue that Africans should take the lead in prioritization and evaluation of environmental hazards, including EDCs. We recommend the institution of education and training programs for chemical users, adoption of the precautionary principle, establishment of biomonitoring programs, and funding of community-based epidemiology and wildlife research programs led and funded by African institutes and private companies.The authors thank the following sponsors for supporting the scientific meeting that was the basis for this commentary: National Institue of Environmental Health Sciences/National Institutes of Health (NIEHS/NIH); Society for the Study of Reproduction (SSR); University of Pretoria Institute for Sustainable Malaria Control (UP ISMC); Water Research Commission of South Africa; Oozoa Biomedical, Inc.; Rand Water; Delfran Pharmaceuticals; AEC Amersham; Hamilton Thorne; Separations; and Acorn Group of Companies

From Ethnographic Knowledge to Anthropological Intelligence: An Anthropologist in the Office of Strategic Services in Second World War Africa

This article explores the overlapping modalities and practical purposes of anthropological ethnographic knowledge and political–military intelligence gathering – the commonalities as well as the boundaries between them – through an analysis of the career of the anthropologist Jack Sargent Harris (1912–2008), a secret operative for the United States’ Office of Strategic Services during the Second World War in Nigeria and South Africa. Calling upon archival and oral historical sources, the article relates Harris’s training in Boasian cultural anthropology and as a professional ethnographer of African societies and cultures to the ways he recruited informants, conducted surveillance, related to foreign Allied officials, utilized documentary evidence, and worked to establish authority and credibility in his wartime intelligence reporting. The article argues that political purpose is a central artefact of anthropological ethnography as it is in other ethnographic modalities even if the justifications for these endeavours remain distinct