The impact of culture on Saudi Arabian information systems security

Culture has an extensive influence on both Saudi Arabian society and its business environment. Saudi Arabia has a collective group oriented culture with close relationships between people. The Islamic religion is part of Saudi Arabian culture and it plays major roles in Saudis lives. Saudi Arabian cultural factors, including language barriers, hierarchy, gender communication, fear of losing face, nepotism and wealth, affect the performance of organisations and their security. This paper focuses on the impact of the environment and culture of Saudi Arabia on information security and makes some suggestions on how these problems may be overcome.