CTRL, ALT, HACKED: Women In Gaming. Facing A Culture Of Stereotypes, Harassment, & Misogyny.

CTRL, ALT, HACKED: Women In Gaming

Facing A Culture Of Stereotypes, Harassment, & Misogyny

This week in cybersecurity, Cybercrime Magazine editors report from Sausalito, Calif., November 7, 2025: Over 40 percent of adolescent gamers in the U.S. avoid media that depict women in stereotypical and harmful ways, according to a recent study.

Teens and Screens Report 2025 Findings

The Center for Scholars & Storytellers (CSS) at UCLA surveyed 1,500 adolescents aged 10-24 about their gaming experiences. The study revealed that 42 percent of female gamers avoid games portraying women derogatorily.

Many respondents expressed a fear of harassment while gaming. More than half of the female players felt pressured to “act a certain way” because of their gender, race, or other identity factors.

The Importance of This Topic

“Every hacker I’ve met is a gamer,” says Fergus Hay, co-founder of The Hacking Games, a community that helps people with hacking skills find cybersecurity jobs.

Women make up about 30 percent of the global cybersecurity workforce, according to Cybersecurity Ventures. Gaming serves as a gateway to this industry, making it vital to create safe and supportive online environments for girls to help increase their participation toward 50 percent.

Summary

This report highlights the urgent need for safer gaming spaces for female players, linking gaming inclusivity directly to growth in cybersecurity diversity and opportunity.

Cybercrime Magazine — 2025-11-07