Cyber Escape Room

Your expert for questions

Thorsten Lembeck

Thorsten Lembeck
Manager bei PwC Germany
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Strengthening your human firewall

Cyber attacks are one of the greatest challenges faced by companies and annual costs for cyber security could increase to as much as US$ 90 billion by 2030. Cyber security encompasses much more than just technology. This is because attacks can be traced back to human error in more than 30% of security incidents. It is therefore all the more important to increase awareness among employees about the dangers of cyber attacks – and that’s exactly where the Cyber Escape Room developed by PwC comes into play.

The most common causes of human error:

  • Employees have little or no interest in IT security.
  • Employees unwittingly pass on sensitive data.
  • Systems are incorrectly configured and this results in reputational damage.
  • Companies do not set enough requirements for users in relation to cyber security.
  • Social engineering attacks are becoming increasingly widespread and employees fall for them.

Supervisory authorities have also singled out the human factor as a risk to cyber security and are increasing their focus on compliance with awareness-raising requirements. Companies can address this risk by providing the appropriate training and further education.

Cyber Escape Room

Our Security Awareness Program

PwC has developed its comprehensive Security Awareness Program to increase employee awareness about the dangers of cyber attacks. One component of this program is the Cyber Escape Room developed by PwC Germany. By allowing their IT employees to experience realistic scenarios, companies can spark greater interest in this topic and communicate complex information using a game-based approach. The Cyber Escape Room helps to reduce security incidents by strengthening awareness among employees. A major factor for success here is the excitement of a simulation that applies gamification techniques.

“In a business environment where cyber attacks are only a question of time, it is vital to be prepared.”

Achim Schäfer,Partner Cyber Security & Privacy

You can see a short preview of the Cyber Escape Room in our video.

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Cyber Escape Room

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    Transcript

    Overview of the Cyber Escape Room

    What is the Cyber Escape Room? The idea

    • The idea for the Cyber Escape Room is based on live escape rooms where a small group of people must work together to find a way out of a real-life room.
    • The group has to escape confinement within a set time limit with the assistance of hidden clues.
    • In the case of the Cyber Escape Room, the participants are placed into a virtual environment, the cyber room.
    • They then have to solve puzzles that build upon each other before time runs out.

    “The Cyber Escape Room is an exciting simulation for IT employees. Using this game-based approach, it is possible to increase consciousness about the risks that exist in cyberspace.”

    Achim Schäfer,Partner Cyber Security & Privacy

    Facts and figures

    30+

    Events per year.

    1,000

    Participants from ten different countries.

    9.8/10.0

    Average customer satisfaction.

    1,400 hours

    Development time in the period from March 2018 to February 2019.


    What the participants say

    We surveyed participants from the widest possible range of organizations about their experiences in the Cyber Escape Room.

    "I enjoyed how we developed and applied knowledge independently. The tasks were doable for a 'layperson' but participants still had to assist each other."

    Employee of a MDAX company

    "The level of detail in the simulation was impressive. It was great that SQL and brute force were also included. We had previously heard of them, but had never worked on them before. This meant that we could get an impression of how an attack might proceed in reality."

    Student

    "The Cyber Escape Room provides a good overview of common hacking methods and concepts."

    Employee of a MDAX company

    "Great story! Not too difficult and also not too frustrating – a good learning experience!"

    Student

    "The event organizers offer a good measure of assistance while simultaneously providing plenty of space for trying things out."

    Employee of a central bank

    "Good specialist assistance, exciting topic, pleasant group size and high-quality training materials – a great event overall."

    Founder of a start-up

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    Thorsten Lembeck

    Thorsten Lembeck

    Manager, PwC Germany

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    Daniela Geretshuber

    Daniela Geretshuber

    Member of the Board and People and Corporate Sustainability Leader, PwC Germany