Summary

The Federal Office of Cybersecurity (BACS) will present itself from April 24 to May 3, 2026 with an interactive experience booth at the Bern public trade fair BEA. Together with nine partner organizations – including Swiss Crime Prevention, SBB and Swiss Post – BACS conveys cybersecurity in a practical and playful manner. Visitors can experience typical digital risks such as phishing, insecure passwords and deepfakes at various stations and receive advice from experts. The goal is to lower barriers and demonstrate that cybersecurity is not an expert topic, but a matter for everyone.

Persons

  • Federal Office of Cybersecurity (BACS) (Authority)

Topics

  • Cybersecurity
  • Public awareness
  • Digital risks
  • Prevention

Clarus Lead

The BACS initiative addresses a growing communication problem: while digital threats are omnipresent in everyday life, users often perceive cybersecurity as abstract and cumbersome, while simultaneously underestimating concrete risks. By shifting cybersecurity from technical expert discourse into an interactive, low-barrier trade fair context, the federal government signals a strategy of mass education rather than expert dominance – with direct implications for prevention success at the individual level.

Detailed Summary

BACS is using the BEA as a platform to bridge the perception gap between abstract understanding and practical action. The core idea is that many people do not see what "happens in the background of devices, apps and networks" – an invisibility that impedes risk awareness. The trade fair booth under the motto "Stay safe – online and offline" relies on experiential learning: visitors can try out and test phishing techniques, the vulnerability of weak passwords and the manipulative power of deepfakes firsthand.

The partnership with nine organizations – including critical infrastructure providers such as SBB and Swiss Post as well as educational providers such as Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts – strengthens credibility and reach. A central message runs through the presentation: "Even small, simple measures significantly increase security in everyday life." This positions cybersecurity not as technical complexity, but as an accessible behavioral problem that can be solved through low-barrier interventions.

Key Messages

  • BACS makes cybersecurity tangible and demystifies it as an expert topic through interactive stations
  • Nine partner organizations from government, infrastructure and education support the awareness campaign
  • Simple protective measures are in focus – not technical depth, but practical everyday competence

Critical Questions

  1. Evidence/Data Quality: What measurement data or evaluations are available to demonstrate the effectiveness of interactive trade fair booths on individual cybersecurity behavior? Or is this a pilot format without success metrics?

  2. Conflicts of Interest: To what extent do commercial interests of partner organizations (e.g., SBB, Swiss Post) influence the content or priorities of risk communication? Are there editorial boundaries?

  3. Causality/Alternatives: Is it assumed that playful experience of risks leads to sustained behavioral change? What alternatives were considered (e.g., digital campaigns, training programs for businesses)?

  4. Feasibility/Risks: How is it ensured that visitors actually transfer the insights gained at the fair into their digital everyday life? Are there follow-up measures or only one-off awareness raising?

  5. Reach/Bias: Who visits the BEA? Is a public trade fair the right format to reach less digitally versed or vulnerable population groups?

Source Directory

Primary Source: Federal Office of Cybersecurity (BACS) – Press Release from 23.04.2026 https://www.news.admin.ch/de/newnsb/jWqBzRHtFMXSoyHc39f_M

Verification Status: ✓ 23.04.2026

This text was created with the support of an AI model. Editorial responsibility: clarus.news | Fact-checking: 23.04.2026