With three decades of experience in cybersecurity and an equal amount of time dedicated to the world of cartoons, we combine paralleled expertise in both fields. The Cybersecurity Cartoon Award, co-founded by Dr. Arash Habibi Lashkari and Kianoush Ramezani, celebrates the convergence of technical prowess and artistic creativity, offering a unique platform that bridges these two dynamic fields. Our goal is to make cybersecurity engaging and accessible through creative graphics, inspiring the next generation to take interest and participate, ultimately elevating the topic, sparking widespread involvement, and celebrating innovative ideas in the field.

Arash Habibi Lashkari

Dr. Arash Habibi Lashkari is a Canada Research Chair (CRC) in Cybersecurity. As the founder and director of the Behaviour-Centric Cybersecurity Center (BCCC), he is a Senior member of IEEE and an Associate Professor at the School of Information Technology at York University. Prior to this, he was an Associate Professor at the Faculty of Computer Science, University of New Brunswick (UNB), and the Research Coordinator of the Canadian Institute for Cybersecurity (CIC). As a cybersecurity researcher with an extensive background spanning over 26 years in industry and academia, he has taught and conducted research & development at various international universities and organizations, contributing significantly to the field. He has received 15 awards at international computer security competitions - including three gold awards - and was recognized as one of Canada’s Top 150 Researchers for 2017. With a remarkable publication record, including 11 books and over 120 academic articles, his work covers diverse cybersecurity topics. He focuses on developing vulnerability detection technology to safeguard network systems against cyberattacks. He also has extensive industrial and development experience in network, software, information, and computer security.

KIANOUSH RAMEZANI

Iranian-awarded political cartoonist Kianoush Ramezani has lived and worked in Europe since 2009. His editorial cartoons have appeared in “Courrier International“, “Guardian“, “Libération“, “Arte“, “Le1“, “WeDemain” and many other European and International media. Kianoush publishes his weekly column "Vu par Kianoush Ramezani" in “La Croix” newspaper each Monday since 2019. A series of Kianoush’s Original cartoons titled “R like Resistance” are part of the collection of Kunst Museum Solingen in Germany. Kianoush received many awards, such as the French Award for Artistic Courage of 2018 in the Angouleme International Comics Festival, the International Cartooning Award of 2012 from Geneva City Hall given by Kofi Annan, and the Award of the Canadian Committee for Press Freedom in 2020. He is also the winner of the LiberPress International Award in 2022. He has given educational lectures in high schools, colleges, and universities since 2010 in Europe to raise awareness about the importance of “freedom of expression” among the young generation. He chose “Cartooning: The Art of Danger” for his TEDx talk 2014, months before the terrorist attack against Charlie Hebdo.