Proposal for a Risk Communication-Based Approach to IT Risk

With society’s increasing dependence on information technology (IT) systems, it is becoming increasingly difficult to resolve safety problems related to IT systems through conventional information security technology alone. Accordingly, under the heading of “IT risk” research, we have been investigating ways to address broader safety problems that arise in relation to IT systems themselves, along with the services and information they handle, in situations that include natural disasters, malfunctions, and human error, as well as risks arising from wrongdoing. Through our research, we confirmed that a risk communication-based approach is essential for resolving IT risk problems, and clarified five issues that pertain to a risk-based approach. Simultaneously, as tools to support problem resolution, we developed a multiple risk communicator (MRC) for consensus formation within organizations, along with Social-MRC for social consensus formation. The results of our research are detailed in this paper.