Empowering Saudi youth: The ISAS framework for promoting online safety and cybersecurity awareness

The increasing use of the Internet, along with the widespread access to social media, video games, and various online platforms, presents significant safety challenges, particularly for young people and teenagers. To address these concerns, this study develops and validates the Internet Security Awareness (ISAS) e-safety framework, designed to promote safe Internet usage among youth in Saudi Arabia. The framework was constructed based on a survey of 92 IT professionals and experts, ensuring its relevance and reliability. Data analysis was conducted using IBM SPSS for exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and IBM AMOS for confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). Of the 33 initial survey items, the study identified 5 items related to privacy, 4 items concerning security, 5 items addressing threats, and 3 items focusing on communication. The findings confirm that these four factors—privacy, security, threats, and communication—are strongly interrelated, demonstrating high validity and reliability. These factors were further examined to assess young people's behavioral intentions to adopt the ISAS e-safety framework in their online activities. This study offers valuable insights for IT professionals and educators while providing practical recommendations for managers aiming to enhance Internet safety awareness among young users.