An actual Web page from the National Security Agency—not a parody:
And a message:
Hi Kids!
Welcome to the NSA/CSS Kids’ page.We’re the CryptoKids and we love cryptology.
What’s cryptology? Cryptology is making and breaking codes. It’s so cool. We make codes so we can send secret messages to our friends. And we try to figure out what other people are writing about by breaking their codes. It’s a lot of fun.
On this site, you can learn all about codes and ciphers, play lots of games and activities, and get to know each of us – Crypto Cat™, Decipher Dog™, Rosetta Stone, Slate, Joules, T.Top, and, of course, our leader CSS Sam…
The TeleRead take: Sometimes it’s fun when ‘crats let loose–for example, when the IRS dispensed information with tabloid-style prose and graphics. Maybe the NSA children’s page actually could be useful in long-term recruiting efforts. No, it’s not the existence of the intelligence agencies per se that scares me when the “bad guys” are dreaming of dirty-nuking the Capitol. Rather it’s the way the agencies can be misused–and the fact that a savvier U.S. foreign policy could have reduced the need for an intel and military buildup. Worse, the imbecility goes on in ways far beyond foreign policy. Hollywood-bought copyright legislation such as the DMCA isn’t exactly the best way to cultivate the skills of future hackers–except that, well, I suppose the kids will flout the laws, anyway.
Meanwhile I’d be curious what TeleBlog readers think of the contents of CryptoKids. How useful, or not? Is the info technically sound?
For what it’s worth, everyone I’ve showed this to at the University of Chicago finds it immensely creepy. If it were run by an independent organization promoting interest in cryptography, that’d be one thing. But this seems to be aimed towards promoting jobs in the NSA to young children. I also wonder how this will affect kids’ abilities to look at the activities of the NSA with a critical eye, if they associate that government branch with fun games they played as a kid.
Even though the page has information designed for people up to my age, I can only see the way it’s presented working for early elementary school kids. Even by the fifth grade, I remember feeling insulted by the cartoon characters in the DARE curriculum. Even though there’s links about how to apply for college and grad school internships, there’s no way I’m surfing through Crypto Cat™ and Decipher Dog™ to find it.
To make it even remotely relevant for anyone over the age of 8, it’d have to be redesigned to have a different layout and presentation for each age group. Second-graders aren’t thinking about what classes they’ll take in high school and college; college students don’t want to see cartoon characters while looking for internships.
Excellent points, Quinn–especially about the cartoonish approach. Furthermore, a larger question arises. If our intel people have trouble understanding U.S. kids and avoiding condescension, how about people from other cultures? Thanks. David