A fuzzy framework for assessing the level of cognitive and operational readiness of regional citizens to ensure their own digital security

Abstract

Citizens’ growing involvement in the digital environment increases exposure to cyber risks caused by the human factor. However, existing assessment approaches mainly focus on technical cybersecurity capacity or general digital literacy and do not comprehensively capture both cognitive awareness and the ability to make correct decisions in typical cyber situations. The purpose of the study is to develop and verify a fuzzy framework for assessing the level of cognitive and operational readiness of citizens of a region to ensure their own digital security. The information base was formed using a questionnaire survey of citizens and two information methods: self-assessment of cognitive cybersecurity awareness on a ten-point scale and assessment of applied cyberliteracy through single-answer test questions. An integral assessment was obtained using a fuzzy model with multidimensional membership functions and a fuzzy rule base. The proposed framework was tested on real data from 315 respondents in the Transcarpathian region collected during March–June 2025. The resulting integral indicator of cognitive and operational readiness was 0.67, which corresponds to a stable average level of population readiness to ensure personal digital security. The proposed framework provides a comprehensive, reproducible, and scalable assessment of citizens’ readiness for digital security and can be used to identify high- risk groups and support educational, preventive, and managerial decision-making at regional and national levels.