🎮 THE HACKING GAMES IS CREATING A GENERATION OF ETHICAL HACKERS TO MAKE THE WORLD SAFER​ 🔒

Inspiring FUTURE CYBER TALENT
FROM PLAY TO PURPOSE.

working in partnership
The Hacking Games LogoCo-Op Logo
[
Curiosity is a superpower
]

>>>See the talent behind the screen>>>

Your gamer upstairs could be the unconventional talent employers are desperate for.

Teens drawn to competitive gaming are building the problem‑solving skills, persistence, and systems thinking that cybersecurity employers value most.

Gaming ≠ wasted time

[
Mindset
]

Skills developed through gaming

The same skills that make a good gamer (pattern recognition, resilience, curiosity) form the foundation of ethical hacking and cybersecurity careers.

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Pattern recognition:

spotting signals in the noise.

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Systems thinking:

how parts interact and fail.

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Team comms:

roles, timing, call‑outs.

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Pressure decisions:

calm in crisis.

[
parents & Teachers
]

Spot the signs of unconventional talent.

Help your teen turn gaming curiosity into a cybersecurity career. Look out for these skills:

System builders:

If you like experimenting with how games work or creating your own systems, you already think like an ethical hacker. This curiosity can lead to roles in hacking, exploit research, and understanding how systems break and can be fixed.

Team leaders:

If you take charge in team matches and communicate clearly under pressure, you have the skills needed for incident response. These roles rely on teamwork, quick decisions, and calm thinking during a cyber attack.

Planners:

If you enjoy planning strategies, managing in-game resources, and finding the most efficient way to win, you would suit roles in security operations and automation. These jobs need people who think ahead and improve systems over time.

Problem solvers:

If you like working alone to solve puzzles or master challenges, you could fit roles in reverse engineering or digital forensics. These areas need patience, focus, and detailed thinking.

Discover career paths and learn from mentors with The Hacking Games.

[
Safeguarding & legality
]

We believe in responsible curiosity, clear boundaries, practical guidance.

Co-op and The Hacking Games are working together to help young people understand the power of their gaming skills and channel them towards careers that protect society rather than threaten it.  Through education in schools, support for parents who often don’t know what their children are doing online, and clear pathways to legitimate cybersecurity careers, we’re intervening early to show talented teenagers there’s a better choice than crime.

Learn about the risks of cyber grooming:

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GAMERS:EMPLOYERS WANT YOUR SKILLS

[
SAMPLE RESULT
]

Cybersecurity teams need a balance of different types of people. These 9 ‘hacking mindset’ personas are valued by every employer. Which ones describe you?

The Executor

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Task-focused

High-pressure operator who thrives on immediate action, whether containing incidents or navigating unpredictable crises.
The Executor is a high-pressure operator who thrives in fast-moving, high-stakes scenarios where decisions must be made in real time. They excel at rapidly responding to uncertain or ambiguous threats, taking calculated action before the full context is clear. The Executor brings structure and control to chaos, acting methodically to contain, investigate, and neutralise active threats - driving momentum, execution, and resolution, ensuring that when others are still analysing, they are already acting.

The Alchemist

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People-System Focused

Blends technical depth with organisational acumen, persuasion, and political strategy to reshape defences in complex, high-stakes environments.
The Alchemist specialises in reshaping systems, behaviors, and cultures through technical and psychological insight, and strategic influence. They are resourceful, resilient, and sensitive to power dynamics, often orchestrating changes in beliefs, mindsets, or organizational structures. Their focus is on transformation and adaptation, empowering others to embrace new realities. They don’t just find problems—they make change happen, achieving remediation often against the inertia of politics, egos, and entrenched inefficiencies. The best Alchemists turn resistance into alignment, chaos into structure, and uncertainty into action.

The Fixer

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Defensive

Innovator who refines and reshapes technology through hardware hacks or code automation.
The Fixer is a hands-on security problem solver, obsessed with refining and reshaping systems to make them more effective. Some Fixers focus on adapting hardware in unconventional ways, modifying devices, or finding practical security applications for unintended use cases . Others use code, AI, and tooling to enhance efficiency, remove friction, and optimise defenses. They take pride in tangible improvements, whether through precision engineering or elegant automation.

The Strategist

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Defensive

Architect of the long game, seeing the battlefield three steps ahead.
A strategic defender who blends foresight, analytical precision, and applied exploitation techniques to anticipate and counter adversaries. They don't just direct the team, they manipulate the chessboard itself, ensuring every move, system, and vulnerability bends to their advantage. A Strategist blends the Exploiter’s opportunism, the Visionary’s foresight, and the Core’s tactical depth, crafting defences that aren’t just reactive but pre-emptive.

The Defender

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Defensive

Guardian of security, anticipating threats, mitigating risk, and leading response efforts under pressure.
The Defender is a defensive operator dedicated to protecting systems, data, and teams from evolving threats. They focus on building resilient infrastructures, identifying vulnerabilities, and mitigating risks. Guided by a strong sense of duty, they prioritize the long-term security and stability of their environment, building pre-emptive protections and operating in high-pressure scenarios as the last line of defence.

The Manipulator

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Offensive

Psychological operator who weaponises trust, deception, and influence to infiltrate and control systems.
The Manipulator is a predator in the digital and psychological arena. Operating in the shadows, they exploit trust, craft illusions, and orchestrate chaos to outmanoeuvre their targets. Analytical and deeply intuitive, they see human behavior as a system to be hacked—probing for emotional weak points, exploiting loyalties, and twisting perceptions to their advantage. Their charisma is a mask, their empathy a tool, and their every interaction a potential manipulation.

The Visionary

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Offensive

Offensive hacker pushing boundaries with groundbreaking tools and techniques, sometimes obsessing over technical mastery.
The Visionary is an offensive hacker who constantly seeks to innovate and push the boundaries of what’s possible. They are creative, bold, and willing to risk failure to achieve breakthroughs. While some focus on conceptual innovation and paradigm shifts, others are deeply obsessed with tool development—perfecting exploits, reverse engineering systems, and crafting sophisticated attack techniques that redefine the field.

The Exploiter

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Offensive

Offensive hacker exploiting vulnerabilities.
The Exploiter is an offensive hacker who thrives on identifying and exploiting vulnerabilities. They are opportunistic, risk-taking, and highly adaptable, with a natural drive to break down defences. Their focus is on immediate results, and they are skilled at turning an opponent's weaknesses into opportunities.

The Core

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Central

Master of their craft, foundational to all hacker types.
The Core is the foundational persona, representing mastery of both offensive and defensive cyber skills, as well as social and technical intelligences. They are versatile, adaptable, and deeply knowledgeable, serving as the bridge between all other hacker types. Whether designing systems, exploiting vulnerabilities, or defending against attacks, The Core embodies the essence of cyber security as a craft. They are disciplined, focused, and committed to continuous learning and improvement.
[
Discover your Persona
]

KEEP IT MOVING