Examination of information security awareness levels of private sector employees in terms of various variables

This study aims to examine the information security awareness levels of private sector employees in relation to individual variables such as digital literacy and mindful awareness. Data were collected from 454 participants through an online questionnaire, and the analysis employed the Information Security Awareness Scale, the Digital Literacy Scale, and the Mindful Awareness Scale. The normality assumption was confirmed for all scales used in the study, and high Cronbach's Alpha values indicated a strong internal consistency and reliability of the measurements. Findings revealed that information security awareness significantly increased with educational attainment. Individuals with postgraduate or higher education exhibited the highest awareness scores. Participants who had received prior information security training demonstrated significantly higher awareness levels across all subdimensions compared to those without such training. In terms of gender, male participants had higher scores in information security awareness and digital literacy, while female participants scored higher in mindful awareness. Regarding job status, white-collar employees reported significantly higher levels of information security awareness, mobile security awareness, and digital literacy compared to blue-collar workers. With respect to work experience, individuals with 1–5 years of experience had higher scores in information security and mobile security awareness than those with more than 20 years of experience. Daily use of digital devices emerged as a significant variable. Participants who spent more than 6 hours online and more than 8 hours on a computer per day had higher levels of information security awareness and digital literacy than others. Correlation analyses indicated strong and positive relationships between information security awareness and both threat perception and mobile device security. Conversely, a weak but significant negative correlation was found between general security awareness and mindful awareness. A moderate negative correlation was also identified between digital literacy and mindful awareness. These findings suggest that information security training programs should not only focus on technical content but also incorporate digital competencies and individual awareness levels. Furthermore, personalized and continuous training strategies tailored to employees' learning needs may play a critical role in sustaining an organizational information security culture. This study reveals the multidimensional structure that affects information security awareness in the private sector and provides a solid foundation for future research.