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The Problem
“Cybercrime is the greatest threat to every company in the world”, stated by former IBM chairman, president, and CEO Ginni Rometty in 2015. Leap forward a few years to 2021, we saw record-breaking cyber attacks take place. In 2021, the FBI received nearly 850,000 cyber crime reports with losses surpassing $6.9 billion in losses (Skiba). This is more than a problem at hand as technology only becomes more complex and integrated with daily life. A change is needed to protect ourselves better before it is too late, and it starts with our youth.
In 2022, we have seen record breaking highs across the globe for ransomware, phishing, and other common cyber crime attacks. One of the most important things about this is, that about 95% of cybersecurity breaches are due to human error (Tuorinsky). Which is where that skill gap, and awareness gap truly show to be an issue for everyone. There is clearly an issue at hand, rooting from the way we learn and are introduced to technology, which results in the skill gap, and awareness gaps we have now. Humans are involved in every aspect of cybersecurity in our complex, interconnected, digitalized world as software and hardware developers, systems administrators, managers, end users, consumers, attackers, and victims.
Humans tend to exhibit an unwarranted degree of confidence in automated systems, which is very inefficient. Nowadays, individuals perform a majority of their work, educational pursuits, shopping, medical consultations, and entertainment activities online. Unfortunately, the escalating time spent online has resulted in a significant increase in cybercrime. This is not surprising, given that more people are transacting online and providing personal account information at a higher rate than ever before.
“Always walk through life as if you have something new to learn and you will.” - Vernon Howard
The younger generation is highly proficient in using electronic devices such as smartphones, laptops, and gaming consoles. Although they are quick to adapt to these devices, they may unintentionally disclose more personal information online than they realize. The internet and social media platforms are especially popular among this demographic, and they are vulnerable to cyber-attacks. Hackers may gather information about their potential victims by leveraging social networks. Children today spend a considerable amount of time online, either for academic or recreational purposes. While the internet provides numerous advantages, it also poses various risks that should be taken into account.
With the increasing prevalence of technology and personal data integration, the younger generation finds it challenging to comprehend the potential opportunities and risks of utilizing the internet and digital systems. As they rely more heavily on technology, the information they disclose digitally may have lasting consequences on their privacy and safety (Quayyum). Often, they fail to recognize the dangers or hazards until it is too late to rectify the situation. As a result, they are susceptible to various forms of online abuse, particularly social engineering attacks. To ensure their safety online, it is critical to impart cyber awareness knowledge to them instead of merely providing them with powerful technological devices without adequate instructions on how to defend and secure themselves online.
Design Thinking Process & Building Empathy
After speaking with many students at ODU about their technological development, and youth between the ages of 7-16 in our community, it was made apparent that nearly all kids have more than one technological device that connects to the internet, and the majority do not have a good grasp on cyber hygiene practices. Most access their own cell phone, tablet, computer, and or gaming systems daily. Most also have never taken any form of cybersecurity or digital protection courses either, and if they did, they specifically signed up for it and were at least aged 13. We learned they do feel it is important to know how to protect one self from the dangers of cyber crime, even though the proper education of it has not been given to them. They also feel it is hard or simply not that interesting to just go and learn on their own.
We would be giving the youth that crucial piece they are missing. They are on their devices all the time, more than ever, and would like to know how to protect themselves, but that just has not been exposed to the majority whatsoever. Especially in an engaging way, that's where we would be able to grab their attention in a fun way, and teach them how to better protect themselves. Cyber Garden would teach them how when working on a skill for yourself, it can help you grow, and evolve into a more resourceful, and intelligent person and give them a sense of rewarding accomplishment from their hard work, and implementing what they learn into every day life.
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