Reducing Phishing Susceptibility among University Students: A Pre–Post Cybersecurity Awareness Intervention

Phishing attacks remain one of the most persistent cybersecurity threats in higher education institutions, where students heavily rely on digital communication systems such as email and online academic platforms. Due to limited cybersecurity awareness and high trust in institutional messages, university students are particularly vulnerable to social engineering attacks. This study evaluates the effectiveness of a short-duration phishing- awareness intervention in reducing phishing susceptibility among undergraduate students. A quantitative pre-test and post-test experimental design was conducted involving 60 students from the Informatics Engineering Study Program at Nusa Putra University. Participants were exposed to a simulated phishing email prior to a structured 30-minute awareness training session and re-evaluated one week later using a comparable phishing simulation. The findings indicate a measurable reduction in phishing click behavior and an improvement in phishing detection confidence after the intervention. The results demonstrate that brief, structured cybersecurity awareness training can significantly enhance human-centered cybersecurity defenses within university environments.