In an increasingly digital world, understanding cyber risks and threats as well as effective countermeasures is key. Young people, although they are a risk group due to their extensive use of digital media, have a low risk perception. Thus, effective communication is needed to encourage secure behavior in the digital space. Little is known, however, about how to communicate with young people about cybersecurity. In a 2x6 experiment based on Protection Motivation Theory, we tested the effect of risk messages with 14- to 21-year-olds (n = 1193) using Instagram video and text formats as stimuli. The results show that the format has no significant influence on the protection motivation. However, the results indicate that perceptions of response efficacy, self-efficacy, and response costs were significant predictors of behavioral intention.
Meißner et al. (Tue,) studied this question.