Frequently Asked Questions

Data Heist means to take items of information forcefully from the owner. Items of information may include facts, figures, pictures, audio and more.

Data: Noun – A plural of datum which means facts, statistic or items of information

Heist: Noun – A robbery or holdup Verb – To rob or take unlawfully and forcefully

Data Heist is the first card game created to educate players on topics related to Data Protection and Personal Cyber Hygiene. It was created with different features; with simple game play such that an 8-year-old can play, as well as additional rules and features to keep a more mature player engaged. 

The game is a bit of an anti-thesis where players play the role of an amateur hacker. The aim of the game is for players to “steal” as much data as they can from unsuspecting victims in the marketplace (and there are many even in real life) using three of the most common forms of attacks that usually result in data loss. 

In the more advance game, players may obtain special attacks and use protection measures to thwart attacks of other players so that they themselves can win the game. This simple game is fun, interactive and most importantly under the facilitation of a skilled educator can impart important lessons on data protection and personal cyber hygiene so that players (and their organizations) can be safe from attacks and vigilant to prevent them.  

Data Heist was created with the key purpose to educate players on two important topics – Data Protection and Personal Cyber Hygiene.

The game was created to be a tool to educate and engage employees in organizations and even students in school to be aware of threats on the internet so that they can protect themselves and their organizations from threat actors who attempt to steal their data.

The creator wants to use Data Heist to improve the effectiveness of data protection and personal hygiene education. Moreover, he hopes to promote the importance of data protection and privacy from youths, so that one day they will grow up to respect privacy of individuals, be responsible in data management and not condone acts of malicious hacking. 

Perhaps one day we have a global society free of hackers but rather collaborators.  

Data Heist was created by Mark Barnabas Lee. He provides advisory on data and privacy protection matters and regularly facilitates classes to educate the public on the same topics. He is also known as the “Data Protection Pal”, and you may connect with him on his social media cradles.

YouTube: www.dataprotectionpal.com

Facebook: www.facebook.com/dataprotectionpal

Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/markbarnabas

Data Heist was designed for two major groups of people – Employees and Students.  

The first are employees of organizations that include corporations, small medium sized enterprises and even non-profit organizations. Data Heist is a game that will allow employees to interact, have a good time together and learn about data protection and cyber hygiene topics. We understand that cyber security and data protection may not be the most exciting topics but yet training and awareness are critical to ensure that employees remain safe from threats and vigilant to attacks and lapses. Data Heist is a good alternative to classroom and non-interactive online webinars.

The second is target group are students particularly those in high school and college. These are probably the heaviest users of the internet lapping up terabytes of bandwidth in social media and gaming apps. Yet many of them are oblivious to the dangers online. Furthermore, data protection and personal cyber hygiene is typically not a mainstream topic in any school. With the increasing use of the internet, it has become an urgent need to educate them on the dangers that lurk online. Moreover, they are at the age where their fundamental values are being shaped. Thus, it is imperative that we educate youth on what is right; i.e., the right and ethical way of handling data so that they will not condone the acts of hackers. And perhaps one day we have a society free of hackers, but rather a society of collaborators who share data for a better future for everyone. A pipe dream some may say, yet I believe with the right education and nurture, one youth a time, we will one day reach the light at the end of the tunnel. 

Players do not need to have any prior knowledge about data protection or cyber hygiene. In a matter of fact, players will learn about data protection and cyber hygiene during the course of playing the game and it is the hope that an adult or teacher can facilitate the learning process. We are in the midst of developing content online for younger learners. 

Data Heist is designed by gamers. As such, the game is designed such that the game is playable even without the need to fit into the data protection and cyber hygiene context. It is the goal of the creator that through playing Data Heist, players can learn more about data protection and cyber hygiene. 

You may place order for Data Heist from us, kindly follow the link here to place your order

The recommended retail price of Data Heist is US$45.00

Contact us for bulk orders of 20 sets or more

These are the specifications of a Data Heist

Weight: 0.360 kg

Dimensions: 16.7 x 3.1 x 11.6 cm

The contents of each Data Heist box set contain the following:

• 47 Data Heist Cards
• 77 Praesidium Cards
• 3 Player Guide and Game Summary
• 3 Learning and Information Cards
• 6 Customized Dice
• 1 Rule Book

These are some of the notable legislations globally involving data protection and privacy:

These are increasingly important topics as we progress into the Internet age because data is a precious asset for organizations. Unfortunately, data is also sought after by several threat actors for not so noble goals and thus posing cyber security risks to organizations big and small. Often threat actors may make use of data to scam individuals or exploit weaknesses of organizations. Moreover, legislations all over the world are starting to introduce data protection and privacy laws where there are obligatory requirements for organizations to protect personal data in their possession. 

Organizations spend a lot on technical cyber security capabilities because it does reduce the risk. Yet, despite good technical defenses, the disturbing truth is that the carelessness and oversight of employees still contribute to a large number of data breaches. Constant education and reminders play an important role to keep cyber hygiene at top of mind and that’s what Data Heist can do to help by providing an engaging experience that sticks.

Each game of Data Heist will last from 30 – 45 minutes depending on the number of players. Upon completion of the game, it will be ideal to have a learning facilitator to share some key pointers on data protection or cyber security so that players can relate it back to their work place. 

There are indeed two sets of cards included in each box of Data Heist. There is a set of 47 cards with the back cover as “Data Heist” (Black) and another 77 cards with the back cover with the word “Praesidium”. All the cards will be used in the Data Heist game. The darker Data Heist cards will be on table while the lighter Praesidium cards will be held in hands of players. 

The Praesidium Cards have an additional application that will be greatly appreciated by data protection and privacy practitioners. Click here to find our more.

Data Heist is designed for 2 to 6 players. 

Data Heist Game is designed for children aged 8 up to adults 88 years old and beyond. However, for children who are younger and are able to count and recognize numbers, then they can join in too!

Each Data Heist game will typically last 30-45 minutes, depending on the number of players and the difficulty of game play.