Empowering Vocational School Students Through Digital Security Training to Prevent Cyber Threats: A Case Study at SMKN 7 Pekanbaru

Digital devices now form the backbone of nearly every classroom, yet that convenience comes tangled with new cybersecurity peril. Students in vocational tracks sit at the crossroads: they click through learning modules all day but rarely receive targeted instruction on how to keep themselves safe online. Without that practical know-how, the hallways of a single school can quietly accumulate risks like data leaks, identity theft, and rogue software. In response, the present study piloted a campus-based workshop designed to meet learners exactly where they are. Courses were delivered at SMKN 7 Pekanbaru, involving thirty trade students who volunteered despite their busy schedules. Lectures spoke in plain language; hands-on exercises replayed incidents pulled from local news; quick-fire quizzes and spirited group debates stitched it all together. Student mastery was quantified by side-by-side snapshots taken before and after the event, measured against five essential security benchmarks. The opening average sat at a modest 18.7 out of 25; the closing number soared to 24.4. A paired t-test for the twenty-nine complete sets of data returned t(29) = 13.25, p < 0.0001, clearly ruling out chance. Glance at the run charts and the upward drift is obvious: every learner moved forward, and the room buzzed with confidence that had been absent hours earlier. Recent research confirms that focused, brief cybersecurity workshops can significantly boost learners grasp of online threats and the defensive habits they employ. Because the instructional framework proved practical, other institutions are well-positioned to adopt it and thereby reduce the cyber vulnerabilities that affect campus communities.