Drake Patrick Mirembe (PhD)

This study investigates the evolution of mobile payment systems, desired security requirements and the level of security awareness and practices among mobile money users in Uganda. Through a mix-research approach for data collection and analysis methods, 465 participants responded to the study (460 mobile money users and five cyber security experts). The study revealed that: 1) about 45% of mobile money end customers share personal identification number (PIN) compared to 29% of the agents; 2) majority of mobile money users do not have formal training in cyber security thus lack necessary knowledge and skills to protect their information and transactions; 3) the level of education of mobile money users directly proportional to improved security practices and behaviours. The authentication protocol on withdraw transaction is very weak. The study proposes a role-based security enhancement framework for users of the mobile money system to mitigate these security concerns.