Girl Scouts and HPE launch new cybersecurity game and patch
Girl Scouts and HPE launch new cybersecurity game and patch
https://mashable.com/article/girl-scouts-hewlett-packard-cybersecurity
Publish Date: 2026-02-19 18:00:00
Source Domain: mashable.com
This ain’t your mama’s Girl Scout patch.
In 2018, Girl Scouts of the USA announced a new set of STEM-oriented badges, including three cybersecurity challenges. Now, the largest Girl Scouts council in the country, Girl Scouts Nation’s Capital (GSNC — located in the D.C. area) is working with Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) to take its troops’ cyber skills to the next level.
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Junior Girl Scouts ages 9-11 in the 60,000 member strong organization will be able to play a custom-made game to learn about privacy, online identities, security, and cyberbullying. Once they complete the game, they’ll earn a decidedly analog new HPE Cybersecurity patch.
“We know that children are going online at younger and younger ages,” Lidia Soto-Harmon, CEO of Girl Scouts Nation’s Capital, told Mashable over email. “We want to equip them with the ability to navigate online as smart, cautious consumers protecting their identity, their data and their safety.”
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Credit: Mashable
“As we look at the world around us, and how much happens online, and how early on kids are engaged online, I think this does become a set of fundamental life skills,” Liz Joyce, HPE’s chief information security officer, told Mashable over the phone.
HPE created the game along with Romero Games to model real-world scenarios. Called Cyber Squad, the game teaches kids about the concept of a “digital footprint,” online safety, privacy, security, and cyberbullying.
“Since we are talking about working with kids, we all know that kids find stuff way more memorable if it’s fun and exciting,” Joyce said. “It was important to us that this was a fun, interactive experience that would hit the right note with the…
