Out 30 September 2026. Teachers can preview the free classroom pack now and plan ahead — the lesson needs one copy of the book.
Book One · Ages 7–9

Cyber Squad and the Quantum Cube

An adventure story for ages 7–9 about how strangers really approach children online — and a free lesson pack for the classroom.

George just wanted to play his favourite game. Then a boy called Echo99 started asking questions — friendly ones. Easy ones. And the grey cube on the desk began to glow.

Out 30 September Free teacher's guide

£9.99 paperback · £3.99 ebook · from 30 September

Written by a cyber security expert Chapter book · 10 chapters Paperback & ebook
Front cover of Cyber Squad and the Quantum Cube by Tahir Alvi.

The story

He only gave away three things.

Nine-year-old George Mitchell is good at his game and bad at bedtime. When a new player messages him — funny, friendly, nine years old, lives just down the road — George messages back.

He gives away his name. Then the part of London he lives in. Then his school. None of it feels like a big deal. That is exactly the trick.

Because Echo99 is not nine. And on a grey cube on George's desk, a fan-shaped symbol has just started to glow red…

Read the whole story
Echo99
says he's 9 · says he's local
hey!! that was a sick move 😂 how long have u been playing
since year 2 lol. im George
nice!! im 9 too. whereabouts in London are you, mate?
Finchley. you?
no way, i live near there too!! what school do u go to? bet we’ve got mates in common
Merry Hill School
i KNEW it. send me a pic so i can see if ive seen u around
don’t ask ur dad tho, he’ll only say no. it can just be our thing 🤫
Three warning signs. He claimed to be the same age. He collected three pieces of George one at a time. And he asked for a secret. In the book, this is the moment the Cube wakes up.

The heroes

Meet the Cyber Squad

Five digital defenders who live inside the Cube and only appear when it calls them. Aisha is the first one out.

Meet all five
Tap a symbol to wake the Squad

Five symbols, etched into the metal, ringed with holes like pinpricks. One for each member of the Squad — and the Cube decides when to call them.

A look inside

More pictures than chapters

Ten short chapters and twelve full-page illustrations — a proper chapter book to read, with a picture every few pages, so a child who isn't yet a confident reader always has somewhere to rest their eyes.

George, Kate and Aisha travelling through the Digital Stream, surrounded by ones, zeroes and padlocks.

Inside the Digital Stream, on the way to find Echo99.

Out 30 September

The big idea

The puzzle piece rule

Nobody hands a stranger something dangerous. They hand over three harmless things to somebody who seems friendly.

Your name is one piece. Your town is one piece. Your school is one piece. On their own, they're nothing. Put them together and they are a map to your front door.

This is the idea at the centre of the book — and the one children remember long after the story ends.

Try it · Tap the pieces George gave away
Nothing selected yet. Pick one and see what a stranger could do with it.

The Cyber Cadet rules

In the book, a child who learns to spot the pattern is made a Cyber Cadet. These are the seven rules they sign up to — and the pledge they take home from the classroom pack.

1

Never share your full name, address, school or phone number online — not even with someone who seems friendly.

2

Don't click links or downloads unless you know they're safe. Free coins are never free.

3

Never send pictures of yourself to people you don't know.

4

If someone online makes you feel uncomfortable, tell a trusted adult straight away.

5

Use strong passwords — and don't share them with your friends.

6

Always ask before chatting or gaming online.

7

Your name and your school and your town together can be just as dangerous as sharing a photo. Keep each piece private.

Be smart. Be safe. Be Cyber Strong!

Free · no sign-up · nothing stored

Three games to play right now

Two minutes each, in a browser, on a phone or a laptop. They work without the book, they ask for nothing about you, and they store nothing at all.

Game · 2 min Spot the stranger Messages arrive while you play. Which are normal, which are collecting pieces of you, and which need a grown-up? Game · 2 min Spot the scam Pop-ups and fake offers. Click the wrong one and the computer freezes. Game · 2 min Shut the padlock Build a password strong enough to close it, and see how fast a computer guesses the weak ones.

For parents

The conversation you've been meaning to have

Talking to a seven-year-old about grooming is hard. Handing them a book about a boy in a video game is not. The safety lesson is carried by the plot, not bolted on to the end of it.

  • Read comfortably alone by most Year 3 and 4 readers
  • Grooming handled honestly, without frightening imagery — and the book says plainly that it is never the child's fault
  • Ends with a note written for you, not for your child
  • Opens the conversation for you, so you don't have to start it cold

Get the book

Cyber Squad and the Quantum Cube

Book One of the Cyber Squad series. Published 30 September 2026.

Paperback
£9.99incl. UK delivery

The one to give, with Cyber Squad Tips and a glossary at the back.

Out 30 September
Ebook
£3.99all devices

Read it tonight. Same story, same back matter — on Kindle, Apple Books, Kobo, or any tablet.

Out 30 September
Schools & libraries
Trade priceon class sets

Bulk orders direct from us, or order through your usual supplier using the ISBN below. Class sets ship with printed teacher's guides.

Email us for a quote

Usually answered same day

Ordering through your school supplier

Stocked in the Ingram catalogue, so any bookshop, wholesaler or library supplier can order it on standard trade terms. Everything your finance office needs is here.

  • TitleCyber Squad and the Quantum Cube
  • AuthorTahir Alvi
  • PublisherCybertak Books
  • Reading age7–9 · KS2
  • ISBN paperback978-1-0669772-0-8
  • ISBN ebook978-1-0669772-1-5
  • FormatPaperback · 12 full-page illustrations
  • AvailabilityTrade discount · returnable

Need a pro-forma invoice, a sample copy for evaluation, or a purchase order raised against your finance system? Email info@cybertak.co.uk — we handle school paperwork all the time.

The author

Why a cyber security consultant wrote a children’s book

Tahir Alvi, author of Cyber Squad and the Quantum Cube.
20+ years in
cyber security

Tahir Alvi has spent over twenty years working in cyber security and runs Sigmatak, a consultancy working with organisations across Europe and the Middle East.

He has run national film-making competitions through UK schools, inviting children to explore online safety in their own words, with shortlisted entries judged by a panel of university academics and senior figures from industry. Cyber Squad and the Quantum Cube is a continuation of that work, and his first book for children.

Cybertak Books is his imprint, publishing children's fiction about staying safe online. Attack of the Worms is next.

Coming next · Book Two

Attack of the Worms

Something is spreading through the school's computers. A worm — a program that copies itself, crawling from machine to machine, swallowing homework, photos and messages as it goes. Every hour, it doubles. By Monday morning it will reach every school in the city.

This time the threat doesn't chat. It doesn't ask questions. It doesn't sleep. It just spreads — and somebody released it on purpose.

And somewhere darker, a voice that isn't quite human is already watching.