EA Forums Online Security Newsletter Badge Handbook

Welcome to the EA Forums Online Security Newsletter Badge Handbook.

This handbook explains how to take part in the ranked version of the newsletter and earn Level 2 or Level 3 badges.

How to enter

To participate in the ranked experience during a Season, you’ll need to sign up using this form and choose one of four classes:

• Sentinel
• Cipher
• Scout
• Archivist
  
  

(head over to Class Description to learn more about each class)

Once you’ve chosen your class, you’ll need to stick with it for the entire Season. You can’t change classes once they’re claimed. After selecting your class, you’ll receive a direct message from me (EA_Kuba) on the forums containing your unique key.

⚠️ Do not share this key with anyone. 

It must be used when submitting the points-claiming form to ensure no one else can claim points on your behalf.

Multiple participants can choose the same class, but you cannot select the same class more than once across all four Seasons.

Monthly tasks

Each month, every class will receive a special task connected to the newsletter. This guide will be updated monthly to reflect the new tasks for each class.

Earning points

Throughout the Season, you’ll collect points to earn higher-level badges. Points can be earned in the following ways:

• Completing the monthly quiz and submitting the quiz code shown at the end  1 point
• Leaving a comment:
• In the newsletter thread, 1 point
• In a different forum thread that references the newsletter (optional), 2 points
• Referencing the newsletter in a different forum thread is optional, not required. When you do mention it, please make sure the reference is meaningful and shared only in threads where it genuinely adds value to the discussion. This option is meant to encourage thoughtful knowledge sharing, not as a shortcut to earning points. The core of participation remains completing the monthly quiz, sharing your own experiences, and finishing the additional class-specific tasks.
  
  
• Completing an additional task related to your chosen class 1 point
  
  

Badge levels

• 1 - 3 points → Level 1 badge for your chosen class
• 4 - 7 points → Level 2 badge for your chosen class
• 8+ points → Level 3 badge for your chosen class
  
  

Points must be claimed each month using this form, where you’ll submit:

• Your quiz code
• A link to your comment
• (If applicable) a code related to the additional task

There is no limit to how many times a points claim form can be submitted; it can be submitted every time you score a point, or once with a set of points required for the badge. 

Leaderboard & submissions

The leaderboard is updated every 6 hours.

• Quiz code-based submissions are processed automatically
• Comment-based points are reviewed and approved by EA Staff

Late submissions are accepted up to 7 days after the publication of a new newsletter edition.

Final reward

At the end of Season 4, if you’ve earned the highest badge for all four classes, you’ll receive the Security Champion Badge.

You can check the current leaderboard here.

Good luck and see you on the leaderboard! 

• Season Registration Form
• Monthly Points Claim Form
• Leaderboard

Sentinel

• Emblem: The Helm
• Story
  • When the first networks learned to remember, the Sentinels were already awake. They do not chase glory or secrets; they stand where failure would ripple outward. To be a Sentinel is to accept stillness as a duty to watch the gates long after others have logged off. Their creed is simple: nothing breaks on their watch without warning.
• Function
  • Sentinels are defenders of accounts, systems, and digital identity. They focus on prevention, secure practices, threat mitigation, and resilience, teaching others how to stay protected before anything goes wrong.
• Emblem Meaning
  • The helmet is not a weapon, but a promise. It symbolizes vigilance, preparedness, and the quiet strength of someone who stands between chaos and everyone else. It hides the face because the role matters more than the individual.

Scout

• Emblem: The Hawk
• Story
  • Scouts see what others dismiss as noise. From high above the systemscape, they trace weak signals, subtle delays, patterns that don’t quite fit. Many crises are stopped not by force, but by a single Scout asking the right question at the right time.
• Function
  • Scouts specialize in early detection and diagnosis. They identify emerging threats, suspicious behavior, and hidden causes behind visible problems. Where others see errors, Scouts see intent.
• Emblem Meaning
  • The hawk represents elevated perspective and precision. Its sharp gaze reflects the Scout’s mindset: fast, alert, and intolerant of blind spots. It is always in motion, always scanning.

Archivist

• Emblem: The Fox
• Story
  • The Archivists learned early that knowledge without structure decays into noise. They gather fragments of articles, incidents, lessons learned, and weave them into an understanding. In times of confusion, they are sought not only for answers, but also for context.
• Function
  • Archivists interpret and organize knowledge. They summarize, document, explain, and preserve information through guides, FAQs, and structured resources that others can rely on long after the moment has passed.
• Emblem Meaning
  • The fox symbolizes intelligent adaptability and careful organization. Clever but not reckless, it reflects the Archivist’s ability to navigate complexity and emerge with clarity intact.

Cipher

• Emblem: The Owl
• Story
  • Ciphers walk the boundary between sense and paradox. They delight in locked doors, twisted logic, and problems that refuse direct solutions. Where rules feel rigid, Ciphers bend perspective until a new path appears.
• Function
  • Ciphers engage with puzzles, obfuscation, lateral problem-solving, and experimental thinking. They challenge assumptions, explore unconventional solutions, and thrive in intellectual uncertainty.
• Emblem Meaning
  • The owl is the keeper of hidden wisdom, alert in the dark, silent until insight strikes. It reflects the Cipher’s relationship with mystery: not to dispel it immediately, but to learn from it.

Shared Universe

Together, these four classes form a balanced system:

• Sentinels protect
• Scouts detect
• Archivists preserve
• Ciphers challenge

None outrank the others; each answers a different kind of threat. In a universe built on information, survival depends not on strength alone, but on awareness, memory, and imagination.