Cybercrime Awareness among Undergraduate Students of Western Odisha: A Survey on Gender and Locality Based Differences
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31305/rrijm.2026.v11.n05.011Keywords:
Cybercrime awareness, undergraduate students, gender, locality, digital safety, Rajendra University, Balangir districtAbstract
The rapid expansion of internet usage in higher education has made undergraduate students one of the most vulnerable groups to cyber threats. Cybercrime today covers a wide range of unlawful acts including hacking, identity theft, phishing, financial fraud, cyber stalking, and online harassment. The present study was designed to examine the level of cybercrime awareness among undergraduate students of Balangir district in Odisha with reference to their gender and locality. A descriptive survey method was adopted for the investigation. The sample consisted of 120 undergraduate students enrolled at Rajendra University, Balangir, drawn through simple random sampling, with equal representation by gender (60 males and 60 females) and locality (60 urban and 60 rural). A researcher made structured questionnaire of 35 items rated on a five point Likert scale that was developed and administered after establishing content validity through expert opinion and reliability through pilot testing. The data collected were analyzed using percentage analysis, mean, standard deviation and the independent samples t-test. Findings revealed that the majority of the respondents fall within the average to above average category of cybercrime awareness. Urban students reported slightly higher mean scores (M = 118.43) than rural students (M = 116.78), although the difference was not statistically significant (t = 0.642, p > 0.05). Female students showed marginally higher awareness (M = 119.45) than their male counterparts (M = 115.77), but the difference also did not reach statistical significance (t = 1.442, p > 0.05). The novelty of the present work lies in providing locality specific empirical evidence from a tribal dominated district of western Odisha, an under-researched region in Indian cybercrime literature. The study recommends the integration of cyber safety modules into the undergraduate curriculum and the regular conduct of awareness programmes for students.
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