The APWG and the US ICT Council for Myanmar are proud to announce the launch of the 23rd national STOP. THINK. CONNECT. cyber safety awareness campaign, established late last month in Myanmar with its own website at https://www.cyberreadymyanmar.org/stctips and feted with a hip-hop party on October 31 in Yangon, featuring dapper rapper Kyat Pha and the ever-popular K-Pop cover group Project K.
US ICT Council for Myanmar signed a Memorandum of Cooperation (MoC) earlier this year with the STOP. THINK. CONNECT. Messaging Convention to promote safer use of the internet and to develop the campaign in Myanmar.
The partnership is expected to enable a process for creating and managing a collaborative arrangement in the promotion of cyber security public awareness information and leverage common cyber security public awareness messaging related to the overall goals of the Convention and the mandate of US ICT as it relates to cyber security.
The American Center in Yangon co-organized the hip-hop party with the U.S. ICT Council for Myanmar, a local association made up of U.S. technology companies, and entertainment company La La Kyi.
“The students and young people who frequent the American Center are the perfect audience for this event as they’re enthusiastic about using technology and social media and also have an interest in American hip-hop music and culture,” said Marcy Carrel, the center’s director.
The event theme was inspired by STOP.THINK.CONNECT.™, a global online safety awareness campaign that was created in the U.S. in 2010 by a coalition of companies and organizations to help all digital citizens to be safer and more secure online. The STOP. THINK. CONNECT. campaign was launched in Myanmar this year as part of the first annual Myanmar Cyber Security Awareness Month (MCM).
The approach of the cyber security advocates recalls the early days of the campaign’s initial launch in the United States by the Department of Homeland Security in October, 2010 and EMC/RSA Security organized the development of a rap video of students from Roxbury, MA and Manchester, New Hampshire to promote the campaign among school children.
Since then, the APWG has worked with national governments, intergovernmental organizations, national and international NGOs, national and transnational trade associations and global treaty organizations to launch some 22 national STOP. THINK. CONNECT. campaigns. Now ready to welcome the campaign’s second decade, the APWG remains committed to the establishment of a global footprint for the campaign as it was initially proposed in 2008 and 2009 to APWG members and correspondents.
Every instantiation of the STOP. THINK. CONNECT.™ cybersecurity awareness message assets strengthens the resonance of the global campaign. Currently deployed STOP. THINK. CONNECT.™ campaigns can be found here:
