Emergent Insight of the Cyber Security Management for Saudi Arabian Universities: A Content Analysis

TL;DR

This paper analyzes the cybersecurity management in Saudi Arabian universities using a holistic qualitative approach to identify vulnerabilities and recommend improvements for safeguarding educational IT systems.

Contribution

It introduces a comprehensive, non-reductionist method to assess cybersecurity policies in complex university environments in Saudi Arabia.

Findings

Identified key vulnerabilities in university cybersecurity systems

Provided tailored recommendations for policy improvements

Highlighted the importance of holistic assessment methods

Abstract

While cyber security has become a prominent concept of emerging information governance, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has been dealing with severe threats to individual and organizational IT systems for a long time. These risks have recently permeated into educational institutions, thereby undermining the confidentiality of information as well as the delivery of education. Recent research has identified various causes and possible solutions to the problem. However, most scholars have considered a reductionist approach, in which the ability of computer configurations to prevent unwanted intrusions is evaluated by breaking them down to their constituent parts. This method is inadequate at studying complex adaptive systems. Therefore, the proposed project is designed to utilize a holistic stance to assess the cybersecurity management and policies in Saudi Arabian universities. Qualitative research, entailing a thorough critical review of ten public universities, will be utilized to investigate the subject matter. The subsequent recommendations can be adopted to enhance the security of IT systems, not only in institutional settings but also in any other environment in which such structures are used.