The Effects of Applying Privacy by Design to Preserve Privacy and Personal Data Protection in Mobile Cloud Computing: An Exploratory Study

Mobile cloud computing (MCC) is a domain that stemmed from advances in mobile technology and cloud computing. Although debate continues about the best strategies to preserve privacy and personal data protection in MCC, it is essential to explore the effects of applying privacy by design (PbD) to preserve privacy and personal data protection in MCC. PbD is a general philosophy that demonstrates privacy should not be overviewed as an afterthought, but rather as a first-class requirement in the design of IT systems. This study explores the effects of applying PbD to preserve privacy and personal data protection in MCC, and is focused on the privacy of personal data. In this exploration, a framework using PbD has been demonstrated, and seven hypotheses were formulated. Moreover, a survey was implemented where 386 responses were used to test the formulated hypotheses. The results of this study supported the perceived benefits, cues to action of PbD, and perceived threat are positively and directly related to privacy and personal data protection behavior in MCC. Moreover, the results supported that the perceived barriers are negatively and directly related to privacy and personal data protection behavior in MCC. Overall, the results support the utilization of PbD to preserve privacy and personal data protection in MCC and encourage the practitioners to utilize PbD to preserve privacy and personal data protection in MCC.