Aspen Digital

At last month’s Aspen Cyber Summit, we announced the grand prize winner and eight runners-up of our “Cybersecurity in Daily Life” poster competition, all teens ages 14-17. Our winners were selected from among the top 50 qualifying entries, hailing from 18 states across the US – from California to New York (and Nebraska!).

These posters are not only feats of creativity and artistic talent, but they also show off teens’ knowledge and insights on cybersecurity in novel ways. Cybersecurity imagery often falls short when depicting this complex topic, defaulting to shadowy hackers in hoodies or Matrix-esque screens of 1s and 0s.

Contrast those images with the artwork by runners-up Maya D. and Charlize S., for example, which merge teen cultural touch points on sports and gaming (respectively) with cybersecurity. Or, take the posters by Solika M. and Daliya V. – both are vibrant, dynamic depictions of online safety that pull us out of the dimly lit “hacker’s room.”

We hope that these teens’ posters can help press the refresh button on cyber visuals, showing us that cybersecurity is much more than binary code – it’s a part of our everyday lives.

Download copies below to post on social media or hang up in your classroom, library, office, or home. When you post, make sure to use the hashtag #AspenCyberPosters.

​​Using digital tools, colored pencils, watercolors, pens, and paint, young artists illustrated the dangers of poor cybersecurity, showcased what a secure digital world looks like, and advocated for tangible steps to improve our online safety. 

Now, during Cybersecurity Awareness Month, we’re spotlighting the shared concerns, interests, and advice on cybersecurity of young people from across the country. We reviewed our top poster competition submissions and identified a few key themes.

When it comes to the cybersecurity priorities of these teen artists:

Keep reading to dig deeper into these takeaways and learn more about how to protect yourself online!

Phishing

Over 1/5 of our top entries draw attention to one of the most common cyber threats: phishing, the process through which scammers trick you into giving them your personal information. Phishing is the central focus of runner-up Sofia N.’s poster, inspired by the classic movie poster for Jaws.

Based on our survey of over 2,000 US adults in the 2024 Consumer Cyber Readiness Report, phishing is the most common type of attack experienced online. But what can we do to protect ourselves from these scams? 

First, pause and think before you click. Our new public service campaign with craig newmark philanthropies and Wondros encourages us to take 9 seconds before clicking, downloading, or sharing an email or a link.

Then, recognize the signs and ask yourself:

• Is there urgent or emotionally loaded language?
• Are they asking you to send personal or financial information?
• Does the email address match the supposed sender’s? 
• Does the email have unexpected attachments?

Finally, report the attempt using the “report phishing” feature and delete the message.

Passwords

Nearly 1/3 of our top entries advocate for strong passwords to stay secure online. Runner-up Maya D.’s poster put passwords at the forefront, reminding us to create ones longer than 7’4” basketball player Victor Wembanyama’s legs.

What else makes a great password? Here are some specific tips:

1. Aim for 16 characters or more when creating a long, strong password
2. Make sure your passwords are unique, with a new password for each website or app
3. Passwords should be random – avoid using number sequences (“1234”) or forms of the word “password”!
4. Ideally, use a password manager to generate random passwords and keep track of your unique passwords

Experts recommend considering a passphrase, a longer password made up of a series of words (like “correct horse battery staple”), instead of a traditional password, which is usually a combination of characters, letters, and numbers, for even better protection.

Multi-Factor Authentication

While strong passwords are a great first step, our diverse poster submissions highlight that there’s even more we can do to stay safe online. Ten percent of artists, including runners-up Charlize S. and Miley M., recommend multi-factor authentication as an extra layer of security. 

Multi-factor authentication, or MFA, is a method to confirm your identity with more than just your password. MFA asks for something you know (like a PIN number), something you have (like a text to your phone), or something that’s part of you (like a fingerprint). 

Our 2024 Consumer Cyber Readiness Report recommends app-based MFA, like Google Authenticator or Duo Mobile, or a physical security key over text-based MFA. With text-based MFA, you can lose access if your phone plan changes or if your device is misplaced or stolen. What’s more, text-based MFA is easier for bad actors to intercept, so other options are more secure.

Share Your Thoughts

If this work is helpful to you, please let us know! We’d love to hear how you plan to use, display, or share these young artists’ posters.

Send us pictures or tag @AspenDigital on Twitter/X and Aspen Digital on LinkedIn, and use the hashtag #AspenCyberPosters.