Cybersecurity and Mental Health in the Digital Age

Abstract

More than half of the world population is connected through the Internet and end users and professionals alike spend many hours on it to communicate, research, work, collaborate and socialize, generating millions of bytes of data daily. Cybercriminals are also taking the advantage to hack systems and steal or corrupt data, disrupt operations and the level and intensity cyber-attacks have increased tremendously, since the Russia invasion of Ukraine. Individuals who have been affected by cybersecurity breaches have been known to develop increased anxiety levels, fear of others online, leading to depression. Cybersecurity professionals are also under pressure to perform and continually prevent attacks and protect information assets. Many of these incident responders have experienced workplace stress, burnout, depression, suicidal thoughts and some quitting the cybersecurity industry due to pressures to keep away all cyber- attacks. All these scenarios of cybersecurity breaches have implications on mental health. This paper did a systematic review to find correlations between cybersecurity and mental health. The findings revealed that as a result of cybersecurity breaches, both users and professionals have developed mental health conditions including anxiety, stress, burnout, depression, suicide thoughts and some professionals quitting the industry and further increasing the skills shortage. The paper concluded that there is a positive correlation between cybersecurity breaches and mental health and we should all be conscious of this and balance our work-life lifestyle; employers should encourage discussions around mental health, provide counselling services and invest in cybersecurity resources and further education to motivate professional staff and reduce cybersecurity skills shortage. Keywords — Cybersecurity, Mental Health, Digital Age, Industry, Cyberspace, Lifestyle