Japan tries to make password security sexy by resorting to manga tropes

Cereal boxes have proven how effective cartoon characters can be in communicating with the young, and Japan's government is also getting in on the act by recruiting a set of typical manga characters to be its latest spokespeople. In a new poster campaign posted around Tokyo's Harajuku district, Japan's Information-technology Promotion Agency is urging teenagers to be mindful of the need for strong security of their mobile devices. "I’ll be waiting for you," proclaims one of the solemn images, "waiting until the day you rethink your password!" Exploiting the manga trope of kabe-don — where a dashing male suitor places his hand on the wall behind a demure young girl and confides in her some important secret — the tongue-in-cheek campaign makes the playful implication that handsome boys prefer girls with strong passwords.

Lest you think this unusual, the Japanese government actually makes a habit of turning its public messages into manga, plastering the insides of administrative buildings with brightly colored instructions and directions. It's a lighthearted approach to getting useful information out there, and likely a more appealing one than some somber public service announcement that teenagers would all turn a blind eye to.

You'll find the full set of images and their translations over at RocketNews24.

• SourceRocketNews24 IPA (JP)
• Related Items psa japan tokyo security manga password harajuku