Facebook : motivations of informational privacy protection behaviour.

Abstract

The revelation of large amounts of personal information on social network sites is increasingly being exploited by malicious attackers. Yet, concerns for privacy appear to be low among users, who do not actively protect their information. This study used Facebook, currently the most popular social network site worldwide, as the context for research. Applying Protection Motivation Theory with normative influence as an added component, this study examined the antecedents that will motivate users to practice informational privacy protection behaviour on Facebook. A survey was conducted on 510 undergraduates selected via convenience sampling. Through a hierarchical multiple regression analysis, it was revealed that four out of six variables were significant predictors: perceived vulnerability to threat, self-efficacy, response efficacy, and benefits. Gender was also found to be a significant factor. In addition, the results showed significant gender differences in variables. The paper concludes with a discussion on public campaign and policy implications.