Gamification in cybersecurity education

Access the gamified activity Story_Game_CS_full.pdf

Game link: Дигиталната потрага на Сара

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This game-based activity was created by Ivana Gerasimovska and aims to raise high school students’ awareness of online safety as well as empathy.

The activity is designed to be played in the classroom, allowing students to gain knowledge about different types of cyberbullying and ways to respond. The game consists of three levels, each with three challenges, where students confront real cyberbullying scenarios, solve logic and interactive tasks, decipher messages, and navigate virtual challenges, while the final level focuses on their emotions and reflects on what they’ve learned from previous challenges.

The game-based activity was created by students Gjorgji Grkov and Nikola Jovanov, under the mentorship of teacher Slavica Janevska. Students gain knowledge and skills on dealing with cyberbullying, recognizing fake links, and navigating online spaces safely.

Players meet Lena, who becomes the target of online threats and scams. Together with Detective Sharl, they uncover the culprit and expose a fake reward. In the final level, players learn the steps Lena should have taken to protect herself.

„Netman: Cybersecurity Mission“ is an interactive educational game for children, designed as a digital escape room, created by Biljana Nikolova.

The player takes on the role of Netman – a hero who must complete three main challenges: protecting personal data, creating strong passwords, and dealing with cyberbullying. Each mission includes questions and interactive tasks, where children learn through choices and guidance. The characters Luna (mentor) and Virusko (digital enemy) guide them through the story. With each successfully completed challenge, a new “door” is unlocked, and at the end, the player earns digital badges for their online safety.

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“Cyber Quest: Sara’s Mission” is an educational interactive escape room–style game designed for students aged 9 to 11, created by Biljana Stojanovska.

Through four levels, students solve tasks related to cyberbullying, digital safety, recognizing false information, and the use of artificial intelligence. The game concludes with a final knowledge test. The activity encourages critical thinking, collaboration, and empathy in the online environment.

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The game, created by Nikolina Gjorgchevska, is an adaptation of the classic story “Alice in Wonderland”, specially designed for 11-year-old students.

The game is played offline and aims to teach the basic principles of cybersecurity in a fun and interactive way. Two students play simultaneously, taking turns to roll a dice or a die (their choice) and move across a digital map filled with challenges, solving questions of varying difficulty inspired by Alice in Wonderland.

Inspired by “Alice in Wonderland”, this game, created by Irina Ivanova, guides students through a fictional digital world – the Internet Land.

After clicking on a suspicious link, Alice wakes up in a virtual world where she must go through 5 levels filled with challenges related to cybersecurity: passwords, phishing, fake profiles, disinformation, cyberbullying, and digital footprint. Working in teams, students make decisions for Alice and explore the consequences through interactive storytelling, mini-challenges, and discussion, promoting critical thinking and responsible online behavior.

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The game-based activity was created by Zorica Adamcevska and is designed for our youngest students. The main character is third-grader Filip, a child with hearing and speech impairments. The game consists of three levels and nine challenges. By completing a cybersecurity puzzle, unlocking a digital chest, and navigating a maze with obstacles set by cyberbullies, Filip learns, discovers, and applies the rules of the Digital Guardian.

The activity can also be played as a group game and includes both group cards, and help cards.

This game-based activity, created by Matilda Bajkova for upper-primary students, aims to teach them how to recognize and respond to cyberbullying, as well as understand the importance of protecting personal data and practicing safe online behavior.

In an elementary school, just before a literary contest, the key to the safe containing students’ work goes missing. Some students receive disturbing messages, and some of their computer profiles are hacked. The main character, Angela, receives a mysterious notebook that guides her through three levels of challenges. Her mission is to find the key and save the school library in time.

“Cyber Factory Under Siege” is a digital educational interactive game created by Martin Madzhovski, for students in grades 6 and 7. The game is designed to educate students about safe online behavior through play and interactivity.

Players take on the role of cyber agents tasked with saving the factory from a digital attack. Through five themed levels, they face challenges related to cybersecurity, including passwords, personal data, scams, viruses, and device security. Each correct decision brings them one step closer to stopping the hacker and protecting the factory.

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“Virtual Safety: Your Mission” is an interactive educational game created by Igor Nikolovski, designed for upper-primary students.

The game aims to teach students how to protect their privacy, use social media safely, and recognize and respond to cyberbullying. Through four missions, students learn how to safeguard their digital identity.

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“Cyber Heroes Mission” is an interactive educational game created by Nela Slezenkova Nikovska, designed for 9-year-old students. Players become Cyber Heroes tasked with saving the digital world from the evil hacker Virus X, who threatens to destroy the internet.

Working in teams, students solve puzzles, decode messages, scan QR codes, identify phishing messages, create strong passwords, and learn how to protect their personal data. Each activity is linked to practical cybersecurity skills.

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This game-based activity, designed for students in grades 1–5 and created by Maja Mitevska-Poceva, aims to teach students about cybersecurity and how to deal with cyberbullying. The main character is Ana, a 9-year-old girl who receives an offensive message from an unknown sender. She embarks on three missions to protect her friends from cyberbullying.

The activity can be implemented as a teacher-led discussion using a presentation, or as a game within the school building. Materials can be accessed: Required resources

This game-based activity was created by Sonja Trifunovska and is designed for students aged 9–10. The main character, Izabela, embarks on an adventure with her classmates to protect the school server from a hacker threat. To successfully complete the mission, students must complete three levels, each with three challenges, developing their knowledge and skills for safe and ethical use of the internet and social media.

The game is interactive, team-based, and problem-solving oriented, involving tasks such as code deciphering, profile analysis, and identifying risky situations in everyday digital life. Game rules Game resources

Cyber Code – The Deleted Future is an interactive educational game created by Margareta Zajkova that guides students through a world full of digital challenges. The game is designed for upper-primary students and aims to develop their cybersecurity skills.

The main character, Mia, faces cyber threats and must solve puzzles to save the school from a hacker attack. The game unfolds across three levels: detecting a virus in the school system, recovering lost data in the library, and the final showdown with a mysterious hacker.

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This game-based activity, designed for high school students by Pale Atanasova, aims to introduce them to the risks of hacker attacks and how to protect themselves.

The main character, Matej, is a 14-year-old student who loves video games. One day, he receives a mysterious message from an unknown player inviting him to a secret mission. When he clicks the link, his computer starts behaving strangely, and his profile is compromised. Matej realizes he may have fallen victim to a hacker attack and must complete challenges to protect his digital identity.

The game activity is designed for elementary school students learning English language, aiming to raise their awareness of cybersecurity. This educational game, created by Narcisa Blazhevska, focuses on preventing hate speech on Instagram and TikTok.

Sara, a 12-year-old student, loves sharing creative videos on Instagram and TikTok. One day, she notices a friend being bullied in the comment section of their latest post. Hateful messages are spreading fast, and Sara realizes she must act before it gets worse. To stop cyber hate speech, she embarks on a digital treasure hunt, solving challenges that will give her the tools to combat online hate and make social media a safer place for everyone.​

The game was created by Juliana Gugoska and is designed for students learning English. It was developed in Genially and follows an Escape Room style. The main goal is for students to learn what cyberbullying is and how to deal with it.

Game narrative: There are 17 students in our class. We were good friends and played together until the third grade. Then students started to form small groups, sometimes arguing and fighting. Now we are in the sixth grade. All students are part of a class chat on Viber. Sometimes, we continue our arguments online. Are we cyberbullying? The teacher asked Alex and Anna to investigate what is happening in the chat group and to help the class understand cyberbullying. Game description, Resources.docx

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“Sarah Kay” is a fun and educational offline game, with optional use of technology if available in the classroom, designed in a treasure hunt style. Students learn about internet safety through an adventure that connects to their everyday experiences.

The game was created by Biljana Lazarevska and is adapted for first graders, incorporating math problems, science, letters, and interactive activities.

To play the game, use the pre-made cards provided.

The game activity was created by Zorica Milkova and is designed for the youngest students. It teaches them how to create secure passwords, recognize online scams, and deal with online bullying.

The activity follows Sara, who received a new tablet for her birthday and is excited to explore the internet. To use it safely, she embarks on an adventure through the “Internet Forest,” where she must master important lessons on cybersecurity. Players help her solve puzzles and become a true Internet Hero.

This game-based activity, created by Marina Pejkovska, is designed for elementary school students. Its goal is to develop students’ skills for safe online behavior and to teach them how to respond to inappropriate conduct.

The main character, Jovan, is an 11-year-old boy facing hurtful comments on Facebook. In the game, players help Jovan overcome the negativity by solving puzzles and learning that everyone deserves respect and support. Correct answers to the activity’s questions can be found in the following document: Answers to assigned tasks

This game-based activity, created by Risto Ristov, is designed to help students recognize cyberbullying and respond appropriately, while introducing the concepts of digital footprint, cyberbullying, and online safety.

The main character, Ana, an elementary school student who spends a lot of time online and on social media, begins to experience bullying from her friends through messages, images, and comments. Ana embarks on a journey to learn how to protect herself and prevent cyberbullying.

“Be Faster Than the Others” is an educational game-based activity for high school students, created by Gjoko Todorov. Its goal is to enhance students’ knowledge of internet safety while also refreshing their basic knowledge in certain subjects.

The activity is implemented in the classroom and includes additional materials for the teacher.

The game, created by Margareta Zajkova, is designed for elementary school students. Its goal is to develop students’ digital literacy, raise awareness of cybersecurity, enable students to recognize safe websites, and understand potential online dangers.

The main character, Mia, is a 12-year-old girl who loves technology and mysteries. One day, while using her tablet, all her photos, documents, and messages suddenly disappear. Mia realizes that someone has attacked her digital future. She must follow the clues and defeat the hacker before it’s too late. To play the game, you will need a spinner, which can be downloaded from the following link: spinner