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Ipomoea batatas L purple variant is a natural source of bioactive compounds with strong antioxidant activity and has long been used in folk medicine. This study aimed to evaluate the active compounds, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory activities of Ipomoea batatas L purple variant leaf extract in rats fed a high-fat diet. The presence of active compounds in the Ipomoea batatas L purple variant was determined by liquid chromatography high resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS). The rats were divided into five experimental groups of six animals in each group. Namely standard diet/normal group (SD), high-fat diet group (HFD), and HFD plus extracts (625; 1250; or 2500 mg/kg) groups for twelve weeks. The effect of leaf extract on antioxidant activity was analyzed using the DPPH assay, while oxidative stress and anti-inflammatory analysis were performed by immunohistochemistry. LC-HRMS analysis showed six active compounds were identified from Ipomoea batatas L. Besides, there is a reduction in oxidative stress through malondialdehyde (MDA) expression on the oral supplementation with Ipomoea batatas leaf purple variant extract doses of 1250 and 2500 mg/kg body weight. Meanwhile, all extract doses can significantly increase antioxidant activities such as nuclear factor-erythroid 2 related factor 2 (Nrf-2) expression, superoxide dismutase 2 (SOD2) expression, and decrease pro-inflammatory such as tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) expression in the aorta. Taken together, these findings provide a basis for the recommendation of compounds from the supplementation of an Ipomoea batatas L purple variant leaf extract can be an alternative herbal therapy to inhibit the harmful effects of a high-fat diet.

Ransomware remains one of the most prevalent cyberthreats to individuals and businesses alike. Psychological techniques are often employed by attackers when infecting victims’ devices with ransomware, in an attempt to increase the likelihood of the victims paying the ransom demand. At the same time, cybersecurity researchers are continually putting in effort to find new ways to prevent ransomware infections and victimisation from happening. Since employees and contractors are often considered to be the most frequent and well-known attack vectors, it makes sense to focus on them. Identifying factors to predict the most vulnerable population to cyberattacks can be useful in preventing or mitigating the impact of ransomware attacks. Additionally, understanding victims’ psychological traits can help us devise better solutions to recover from the attack more effectively, while at the same time, encouraging victims not to pay the ransom demand to cybercriminals. In this paper, we investigated the relationship between personality types and ransomware victimisation, in order to understand whether people with certain personality types would be more prone to becoming a ransomware victim or not. We also studied the behavioural and psychological effects of becoming a ransomware victim, in an attempt to see whether such an experience can be used to reinforce positive cybersecurity behaviours in the future. We carried out a survey involving 880 participants, recruited through the Prolific online survey platform. First, these participants were asked to answer a set of standard questions to determine their personality type, using the Big-Five personality trait indicators. They were then asked to answer several follow-up questions regarding victimisation, as well as their feelings and views post-victimisation. We found that 9.55% (n=84) of the participants had been a victim of ransomware. Out of these, 2.38% (n=2) were found to have paid the ransom. We found no compelling evidence to suggest that personality traits would influence ransomware victimisation. In other words, there are no discernible differences regarding potential ransomware victimisation based on people’s personality types alone. Therefore, we should not blame victims for falling prey – in particular, we should not apportion the blame to their personality type. These findings can be used to improve positive cybersecurity behaviours, for example, by encouraging victims to invest more in cybersecurity products and tools. Additionally, our results showed that the aftermath of a ransomware attack could be quite devastating and hard to deal with for many victims. Finally, our research shows that properly dealing with ransomware is a complex socio-technical challenge that requires both technical and psychological support.

As Internet use increases, there is a growing risk of online harms, including cyber stalking and cyber harassment. However, there has been limited research investigating the impact of such online harms upon adults' well-being. This article engages in a systematic literature review concerning the mental health impact of online stalking and harassment for adult victims to further understand their experiences and the effects these have on their lives. Our research utilized the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analysis technique to review articles published in eight online databases. A total of 1,204 articles were extracted and, ultimately, 43 articles analyzed. Forty-two of the reviewed articles reported that victims of cyber stalking and/or harassment experienced a multitude of harmful and detrimental consequences for their mental health, including depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, and panic attacks. Victims recounted the lack of support they received from the criminal justice system and their subsequent distrust of technology postabuse. Only one study found no relationship between cyber abuse victimization and the well-being dimensions they examined. Our research highlights the need to devise practical solutions to tackle and minimize this victimization. Furthermore, it underlines the necessity for adult education concerning safer technology use, as well as for researchers to be transparent regarding the platforms that victims have been abused on, so we can better infer where and how exactly individuals need support to interact safely online.