Young children are among the most vulnerable to cyber threats. Given the prevalence of the internet in their daily lives, from educational to recreational use, the risks associated with their exposure continue to rise, from phishing and cyberbullying to identity theft and malware attacks. This makes cybersecurity education and awareness critical.
Learning in a fun and interactive way
To make learning about cybersecurity fun, our professionals in Finland developed a free mobile game for primary school children ages 7–12. An interactive cyber game with an important mission, “Spoofy” turns children into cybersecurity superheroes who help solve puzzles in different real-life environments such as home and school.
Children learn basic practices to protect themselves from cyberbullying and scams, as well as digital security skills related to passwords, privacy, and internet usage. The app also provides helpful tips to parents, caregivers, and teachers on how to talk with children about online safety.
Since its launch in 2019 in Finland, Spoofy is now available in both web and app versions in several countries and multiple languages, including Finland (Finnish and Swedish), Estonia (Estonian, English, and Russian), the Netherlands (Dutch), Lithuania (Lithuanian, Ukrainian), Denmark (Danish), Poland (Polish), and Ukraine (Ukrainian). With the release of its fifth iteration in October 2023, we expanded Spoofy’s target group to ages 7–15.
Collaboration helps to advance usage and innovation
The Spoofy team of dedicated, passionate CGI professionals collaborate with external partners from public, private and nongovernmental sectors who contribute in different ways, including funding, research, game design, and software development. For instance, we worked with the Government of Ukraine to widen Spoofy’s reach, including for use among refugees.
Our goal is to reach all target-aged children across the regions Spoofy is available. So far, the app has recorded 35,000–40,000 players, with participation constantly growing.
CGI business units provide the majority of funding, including sponsoring employee volunteer activities. In addition, our ESG and cybersecurity teams, web developers, and other experts contribute to Spoofy’s development as needed. Telia, a telecom company in Northern Europe, is among our corporate partners. Tallinn University in Estonia supplied designs for our latest iteration. In addition, the European Union-funded SuperCyberKids is a research project under the Erasmus+ Programme that focuses on Spoofy.
Spoofy is also helping to drive social dialogue on this vital topic through articles, podcasts, and live events on social platforms. We plan to grow Spoofy, with expansion to new countries and new languages and features underway.
