Video games are very big business. The industry was calculated at $22.41 billion in the U.S. alone, by the researchers at NPD Group in 2014.
The insatiable appetite for games and resulting economic impact of gamers has been credited with driving major tech industry advancements, from better graphics that require ever-higher processor speed to driving down costs of pricey tech innovations making it more accessible in all markets.
Perhaps now is time for gamers and game developers to play a role in helping to shape cybersecurity.
New research shows concerns about cybersecurity among gamers and that the majority of gamers lack confidence in game developers’ ability to ensure their security. According to a new study by PlayFab, the back-end services provider for games, 83% of gamers believe that game developers should be responsible for securing a player’s personal data – though fewer than 40% said they currently feel confident with the safeguards.
When asked about the security of their game accounts and experiences, more than 80% ranked either personally identifiable or financial related information as the most important thing to protect. The concern is not surprising, considering high profile data security breaches that have taken place across the industry, including the huge hack of the Sony PlayStation Network, when hackers stole identity information for up to 77 million players.
“These survey results underscore both the opportunity for game developers to improve trust by focusing on security measures, and the importance that they do so to safeguard an audience that relies on them,” noted James Gwertzman, co-founder and CEO of PlayFab.
Meanwhile, gamers are also being enlisted to help the cybersecurity industry fight cybercrime – by doing what they do best.
In the UK, gamers are being recruited to fill the cybersecurity skills gap as part of the Cybersecurity Challenge UK, a government and industry-backed program designed to promote cybersecurity as a profession.
As part of the effort, the UK government has launched a new 3D video game platform, a browser-based massively multiplayer online game (MMO), where members of the general public of all ages and abilities are invited to participate and crack codes in cybersecurity games.
Stephanie Daman, the CEO of the Cybersecurity Challenge UK recently told the tech website Motherboard, “…a lot of people who are very good at cybersecurity are also gamers.” She identified a convergence of traits that make gamers good security professionals, “It’s that urge to find out how something works, to pursue a trail, to get to the end, to see what’s there.”
If we can transfer gamers concerns around cybersecurity and apply their skills to protect our data, everyone wins.
Game on.
