Andrada Fiscutean , Contributing Writer, Dark Reading January 26, 2026 6 Min Read Source: Viktor Gladkov via Alamy Stock Photo An eye-catching giant heart dangles from the ceiling in the lobby of Finnish security company WithSecure. The heart is crafted from 728 computer mice, crowdsourced from around the world, and each one is painted pink. The "Click for Love" art installation is the work of two artists, Hugo Lankinen and Kasper Hildén, who conceived of a pixelated heart in which each mouse acted as a 3D pixel. The heart references the infamous ILOVEYOU virus, which swept through email systems in the early 2000s with infected attachments deceptively titled "I love you." This pink heart is more than just a tribute to a pivotal moment in cybersecurity history; it also serves as a reflection on the fragile intersection of technology, trust, and human emotion, says Mikko Hyppönen, who was chief research officer at WithSecure at the time. "Click for Love" stands as a centerpiece of WithSecure's Museum of Malware Art , the first institution of this kind in the world. Launched in late 2024, it transforms digital threats into thought-provoking works of art and offers a unique perspective on cybersecurity. "We wanted to do something which isn't just about the past, but also looks into the future, and the best way to look into the future is through the lens of art," says Hyppönen, who owns a large collection of computer malware and is now chief research officer at Sensofusion. Rather than establishing a history museum, Hyppönen commissioned work from international artists. Cybersecurity and art have long been intertwined. In 2019, there was the Museum of Modern Malware (MoMal) at DEFCON27, a pop-up exhibit that turned digital threats into art. The collection featured artwork inspired by well-known malware, such as TeslaCrypt, the Zeus Trojan, and the ILOVEYOU virus. When Hyppönen attended the MoMal exhibit, he was captivated with the concept, recalls Aaron S. DeVera, one of the organizers of the pop-up exhibit. "I have an amazing picture of [Hypponen] at our exhibit, and he literally, on the spot, was like, 'I want to do this in Finland,'" they say. Hacker Artists Are Onto Something Many artists are hackers, and artwork centered around cybersecurity can serve as "interesting cultural commentaries," says Dr. Jussi Parikka, professor of Digital Aesthetics and Culture at Aarhus University in Denmark. Examples include Biennale.py (a computer virus created in 2001 for the 49th Venice Biennale), ASCII Shell Forkbomb (an elegantly written fork bomb designed by Jaromil from 2002 that has become a popular tattoo in some IT and hacker circles), and the arts competitions hosted by the University of California at Berkeley's Center for Long-Term Cybersecurity. There is also The Persistence of Chaos by Internet artist Guo O Dong, an artwork in the form of an old 10.2-inch Samsung NC10-14GB laptop loaded with six of the world's most dangerous pieces of malware: ILOVEYOU, MyDoom, SoBig, WannaCry, DarkTequila, and BlackEnergy. This piece sold for $1.2 million in 2019. In places like New York City where the tech art scene is booming, there is The Net Gala, a hacker-and tech-themed art exhibition that was a take on fashion's Met Gala. It is an immersive showcase where artists and thinkers explore themes like hidden malware, supply chain vulnerabilities, technological subversion, espionage, and misinformation, DeVera says. The Net Gala has showcased artists like Chia Amisola, an "Internet ambient" artist who examines the Web's dynamics of love, labor, and liberation; Nika Korchok, who blends hardware security with traditional art, focusing on reverse engineering, denial-of-service malware, and bootkits; MORAKANA, a NYC-based studio that uses custom tools to reimagine technology's role in nature; and Summer Surgent-Gough, who captures New York City's queer scene through photography, blending darkroom prints with personal ephemera. The Aesthetics of Destruction Cybersecurity experts don't necessarily see themselves as artists, yet their work often relies on creativity. Uncovering vulnerabilities or taking things apart requires ingenuity and out-of-the-box thinking. Alex Delamotte, a senior threat researcher at SentinelOne, sees creativity, curiosity, and the ability to break things down into their core components as part of both worlds. She worked with DeVera and others on several projects at the intersection of cybersecurity and art, including the first The Net Gala in 2024. "I've never been a builder. I've always been a destroyer," says Delamotte, noting her interest in reverse engineering and taking things apart. "But there is beauty in that, too, because you're still bringing new information to light through that process of destruction." DeVera also finds beauty in the deconstruction of systems, embracing the tension between decay and innovation as a catalyst for transformation. "Destruction is just a natural part of any earthly process, and oftentimes it represents itself in a beautiful way, just the way that creation does," they say. Touching the Malware In Helsinki, the Museum of Malware Art presents "W/Threatscape," an interactive installation by Finnish artist Iikko Kuusela. This immersive piece lets viewers engage with near-real-time threat data, enabling them to capture malware with their hands and transform digital threats into a tangible experience. The installation generates images using artificial intelligence (AI) — blending gesture recognition, visual programming, and image diffusion models — to transform invisible cyber threats into an interactive experience. While Hyppönen was showing the installation, he grabbed a rootkit, and as he did, a detailed description of the captured rootkit was projected onto the wall. A QR code allows visitors to download the malware onto their phones. "This is one of my favorites," Hyppönen said of the art installation. "People have been standing here for quite a while making different malware copies and downloading them all." The transformative power of AI is one of the reasons the Museum of Malware Art doesn't focus solely on the present — it delves into both the past and the future of malware. Understanding historical cyber threats provides context for today's challenges, while exploring AI-driven and emerging exploits helps anticipate, to some extent, what's to come. The "Virus Archive" at the museum, curated by malware historian Daniel White, is a time capsule. Showcasing malware dating back to 1987, it traces the evolution of cyber threats, from primitive MS-DOS viruses to sophisticated ransomware. More than just a collection of malicious code, the installation reveals the artistry, ingenuity, and complexity behind malicious software, offering a rare glimpse into the darker side of technological innovation. The museum, complete with a dedicated shop selling scarves patterned after the DUCKTAIL malware, is designed to immerse visitors beyond the exhibits. It seeks to turn cyber threats into tangible art, making the unseen world of malware accessible and unforgettable. "We want to have something here for people to enjoy and to open up the whole problem of cyberattacks in a different way," Hyppönen says. "If there's one thing I've learned in the 34 years that I've worked in cybersecurity, it is that, indeed, destruction can be beautiful." About the Author Andrada Fiscutean Contributing Writer, Dark Reading Andrada Fiscutean is a technology journalist and radio news editor. She writes about hackers, malware, women in tech, and companies based in Eastern Europe. See more from Andrada Fiscutean