FYI.

This story is over 5 years old.

Tech

Watch The FBI's Hilariously Overacted Cybersecurity PSAs

There's some good advice in there, if you can hear it over the sound of your own chuckling.

Scared of being hacked? Have no fear, Americans, the FBI is here to help. Earlier this week, the agency released a collection of amazing, hilariously overacted cybersecurity public service announcements on YouTube.

Citizens, wheel the big TV cart into your conference room and get ready to learn how to be a productive denizen of the internet.

In all fairness, the FBI's cybersecurity tips are actually pretty sound advice. For example, take this first one, which depicts an overzealous boss not listening to his assistant's suspicions of a phishy-sounding email and accidentally transferring money. (Perhaps inspired by real-life events?)

Advertisement

It's good to be suspicious of emails, even when they look like they are from legitimate contacts and senders. Take the time to analyze the actual sender and the copy of the email (hackers are known to make spelling and grammar mistakes), before taking any action.

The FBI also wants you to be on the lookout for ransomware, programs that can hijack your computer in exchange for money or other forms of ransom, as we've written about on occasion. But in conveying that message, it does so by shading bosses who don't respect their IT departments, complete with hijinksy-music. Have a look.

Finally, the FBI would like you to please not pirate media, mmkay? Otherwise, you may end up like this poor soul, identified only as "Kyle," who's speaking to us from a shadowy enclave and facing up to three years of jail time. This because he found some movies "on a disc, laying out in the open" at his workplace, and proceeded to copy and share them online.

Bonus round: The US Army wants YOU to help stop all of the above, and give your fellow cyber-soldiers a fistbump when you've saved the frickin' planet. Or something like that.

They're advertising their cybersecurity program with a mechanical voice intoning, "I am the enemy with no face."

Displayed on the laptop prompt is the website Recruit A Hacker Dot Net, which, when followed, takes you to a puzzle game and links to military job boards. And this message:

Moral of these stories: Listen to the nerds in your life. They will not guide you astray. Even Kyle.

Get six of our favorite Motherboard stories every day by signing up for our newsletter.