Measuring User Perceived Security of Mobile Banking Applications

Mobile banking applications have gained popularity and have significantly revolutionised the banking industry. Despite the convenience offered by M-Banking Apps, users are often distrustful of the security of the applications due to an increasing trend of cyber security compromises, cyber-attacks, and data breaches. Considering the upsurge in cyber security vulnerabilities of M-Banking Apps and the paucity of research in this domain, this study was conducted to empirically measure user-perceived security of M-Banking Apps. A total of 315 responses from study participants were analysed using covariance-based structural equation modelling (CB-SEM). The results indicated that most constructs of the baseline Extended Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT2) structure were validated. Perceived security, institutional trust and technology trust were confirmed as factors that affect user's intention to adopt and use M-Banking Apps. However, perceived risk was not confirmed as a significant predictor. The current study further revealed that in the context of M-Banking Apps, the effects of security and trust are complex. The impact of perceived security and institutional trust on behavioural intention was moderated by age, gender, experience, income, and education, while perceived security on use behaviour was moderated by age, gender, and experience. The effect of technology trust on behavioural intention was moderated by age, education, and experience. Overall, the proposed conceptual model achieved acceptable fit and explained 79% of the variance in behavioural intention and 54.7% in use behaviour of M-Banking Apps, higher than that obtained in the original UTAUT2. The guarantee of enhanced security, advanced privacy mechanisms and trust should be considered paramount in future strategies aimed at promoting M-Banking Apps adoption and use.