Reducing Cybersecurity Risk Through Strategic Messaging: Insights for Improved Cyberhygiene

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Presented at CyberCON 2025 by

George Burruss

Courtney Weber

Human behavior online poses a significant cybersecurity risk, a fact now widely recognized within the cybersecurity industry. While much attention is given to technical solutions for minimizing security gaps, cybersecurity education and training are essential tools for enhancing cyberhygiene—the deliberate actions individuals and organizations take to protect against malicious attacks. However, evidence-based best practices often remain underdeveloped in these efforts. To address this gap, the Cybercrime Interdisciplinary Behavioral Research Laboratory (CIBR Lab) at USF has investigated the impact of different messaging strategies on improving cyberhygiene. In this presentation, we share the results of our experiments and explore the policy implications for strengthening cybersecurity practices. Generally, we find that messaging promoting protective actions and emphasizing the severity of online risks significantly increases individuals adopting safer online behaviors.