The impact of cybercrimes threats on social media usage in Tanzania
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.51867/ajernet.7.3.24Keywords:
Cybercrime, Cyberbullying, Data Breaches, Phishing, Social Media Usage, TanzaniaAbstract
This paper examined the impact of cybercrime threats on social media usage in Tanzania. Protection Motivation Theory (PMT) and Social Cognitive Theory (SCT) guided this paper. Descriptive survey design was employed utilizing mixed research methods to collect quantitative and qualitative data. The target population comprises the social media users from Dar es Salaam region, from which a sample of 340 was drawn using two stage cluster sampling technique. Data was collected through questionnaire and semi-structured interview. Seemingly Unrelated Regression (SURE) was employed to test postulated relationships between phishing attacks, cyberbullying and harassment, data breaches and social media usage factors such as engagement, trust and platform preferences. The findings revealed that phishing, cyberbullying and data breaches significantly undermine social media usage. Furthermore, phishing attacks lowered trust and engagement, cyberbullying deterred engagement particularly from women and youth while data breach had the most significant negative impact by lowering user confidence in privacy and security. The study concludes that cybercrime threats have a crucial impact on user behavior and lower substantial engagement on social media platforms in Tanzania. The research proposes to enhance digital literacy campaign, enforcement of cyber laws and platform level safety features to restore trust and promote safe interaction.
Downloads
References
Anti-Phishing Working Group. (2025). Phishing activity trends report: 4th quarter 2024. https://docs.apwg.org/reports/apwg_trends_report_q4_2024.pdf
Bandura, A. (2001). Social cognitive theory: An agentic perspective. Annual Review of Psychology, 52, 1-26. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.psych.52.1.1
Benard, M. C., Mwadudu, C. M., Charo, J., & Mgala, M. (2021). Cyber-crimes issues on social media usage among higher learning institutions students in Dar es Salaam Region, Tanzania. International Journal of Scientific Research in Science, Engineering and Technology, 8(4), 138-148.
https://doi.org/10.32628/IJSRSET218418
Börsting, J., Frener, R., & Trepte, S. (2024). Privacy and political online microtargeting during the German Federal Election 2021. Behaviour & Information Technology, 44(12), 3097-3114. https://doi.org/10.1080/0144929X.2024.2431052
Chen, S., Gu, C., Wei, J., & Lv, M. (2023). Research on the influence mechanism of privacy invasion experiences with privacy protection intentions in social media contexts: Regulatory focus as the moderator. Frontiers in Psychology, 13, Article 1031592. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1031592
DataReportal. (2024). Digital 2024: Tanzania. Kepios, We Are Social, & Meltwater. https://datareportal.com/reports/digital-2024-tanzania
Fletcher, R., Robertson, C. T., Arguedas, A. R., & Nielsen, R. K. (2024). Reuters Institute digital news report 2024. Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. https://doi.org/10.60625/risj-vy6n-4v57
Frauenstein, E. D., Flowerday, S., Mishi, S., & Warkentin, M. (2023). Unraveling the behavioral influence of social media on phishing susceptibility: A personality-habit-information processing model. Information & Management, 60(7), Article 103858. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.im.2023.103858
GSMA. (2024). The mobile economy: Sub-Saharan Africa 2024. https://event-assets.gsma.com/pdf/GSMA_ME_SSA_2024_Web.pdf
The Guardian (Tanzania). (2024, April 22). State of digital in Tanzania 2024/25. IPP Media. https://www.ippmedia.com/the-guardian/business
Hedayati, S., Damghanian, H., Farhadinejad, M., & Rastgar, A. A. (2023). Meta-analysis on application of Protection Motivation Theory in preventive behaviors against COVID-19. International Journal of Disaster Risk Reduction, Article 103758. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijdrr.2023.103758
Ho, F. N., Ho-Dac, N., & Huang, J. S. (2023). The effects of privacy and data breaches on consumers' online self-disclosure, protection behavior, and message valence. SAGE Open, 13(3), 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1177/21582440231181395
INTERPOL. (2025). Africa cyberthreat assessment report 2025. https://www.interpol.int/News-and-Events/News/2025/New-INTERPOL-report-warns-of-sharp-rise-in-cybercrime-in-Africa
Kayumbe, E., & Gilliard, E. (2024). Cybersecurity in Tanzania: Opportunities and challenges. International Journal for Multidisciplinary Research, 6(1), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.36948/ijfmr.2024.v06i01.14058
Kim, Y., Kim, S. H., Peterson, R. A., & Choi, J. (2023). Privacy concern and its consequences: A meta-analysis. Technological Forecasting and Social Change, 196, Article 122789. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2023.122789
Koonce, G. L., & Kelly, M. D. (2014). Analysis of the reliability and validity of a mentor's assessment for principal internships. NCPEA Education Leadership Review, 15(2), 33-48.
Maddux, J. E., & Rogers, R. W. (1983). Protection motivation and self-efficacy: A revised theory of fear appeals and attitude change. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 19(5), 469-479. https://doi.org/10.1016/0022-1031(83)90023-9
Mataga, V. T. (2022). Factors influencing university female students' response to cyberbullying and effects on academic performance (Master's thesis, University of Cape Town). http://hdl.handle.net/11427/37621
Mkoweka, W. M. (2023). Assessment of public awareness on cyber complexity when using social media platforms in Tanzania: A case of Kigamboni Municipality. European Journal of Theoretical and Applied Sciences, 1(4), 774-781. https://doi.org/10.59324/ejtas.2023.1(4).70
Morgan, S. (2020, November 13). Cybercrime to cost the world $10.5 trillion annually by 2025. Cybersecurity Ventures. https://cybersecurityventures.com/hackerpocalypse-cybercrime-report-2016/
Mwamba, F., & Mjema, E. A. (2024). The effects of phishing attacks on mobile phone users in Tanzania: A case of Kariakoo Market, Dar es Salaam. African Journal of Empirical Research, 5(4), 665-674. https://doi.org/10.51867/ajernet.5.4.54
Nashon, S. (2025). Assessing the implementation of the Cybercrimes Act in combating cybercrimes. International Journal of Current Science, 15(4), 439-455. https://rjpn.org/ijcspub/papers/IJCSP25D1051.pdf
Neves, J., Turel, O., & Oliveira, T. (2024). Privacy concerns in social media use: A fear appeal intervention. International Journal of Information Management Data Insights, 4(2), Article 100260. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jjimei.2024.100260
Niu, J., Mazhar, B., Haq, I. U., & Maqsood, F. (2024). Protecting privacy on social media: Mitigating cyberbullying and data heist through regulated use and detox, with a mediating role of privacy safety motivations. Social Media + Society, 10(4), 1-6. https://doi.org/10.1177/20563051241306331
PhishLabs. (2024). Leading cybersecurity threats targeting organizations on social media worldwide as of the fourth quarter of 2023. Statista. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1499087
Rogers, R. W. (1975). A protection motivation theory of fear appeals and attitude change. The Journal of Psychology, 91(1), 93-114. https://doi.org/10.1080/00223980.1975.9915803
Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority. (2022). Communications statistics report: Quarter ending December 2022. https://www.tcra.go.tz/uploads/text-editor/files/Quarter%202%20Communications%20Statistics%20-%20Revised%20Final%20(1)_1677145396.pdf
Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority. (2024). Communications statistics: Quarter ending September 2024. Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority.
Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority. (2025). Communications statistics report: Quarter ending December 2025. Tanzania Communications Regulatory Authority.
The Citizen. (2023). Kyela cocoa boom: Farmers urged to go commercial as prices rise. https://www.thecitizen.co.tz/tanzania/business/kyela-cocoa-boom-farmers-urged-to-go-commercial-as-prices-rise-4471128
The Citizen. (2025). Experts back Tanzania's cyber-security push amid growing digital threats. https://www.thecitizen.co.tz
Toukabri, O. (2024). Analysis of social media and phishing awareness among diverse higher education students: A Health Belief Model (Master's thesis). Örebro University.
World Economic Forum. (2024). The global risks report 2024. https://www.weforum.org/reports/global-risks-report-2024
Young, E., McCain, J. L., Mercado, M. C., Ballesteros, M. F., Moore, S., Licitis, L., Stinson, J., Everett Jones, S., & Wilkins, N. J. (2024). Frequent social media use and experiences with bullying victimization, persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness, and suicide risk among high school students-Youth Risk Behavior Survey, United States, 2023. MMWR Supplements, 73(4), 23-30. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.su7304a3
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Hamisi Zahoro, Veneranda Rutainurwa
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
