A New York-based computer security firm, MessageLabs Inc., is bringing digital demons to life.

A new MessageLabs advertising campaign features illustrated versions of computer security threats, including spyware, spam, and phishing attacks. The 3-D shapes correlate to actual characteristics of the malicious computer code. “Computer security advertising often struggles to visualize computer threats. You normally just see boring clichés, like someone frowning behind a PC. We wanted to visualize the range of computer threats that are out there in a more compelling way,” the company’s chief marketing officer, Jos White, said.

“It’s a very smart campaign,” the advertising critic for Adweek, Barbara Lippert, said. “I think threat visualization is the wave of the future. … And as far as getting attention on a small budget for something as boring as data protection, they did a great job.”

The company asked a graduate student from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Media Lab, Alex Dragulescu, to create “mug shots” of 15 different kinds of online security demons. Mr. Dragulescu created the so-called threat art by running a sample of code from each malicious program through his own specially designed software.

“It’s interesting to find rhythms in the data that can be mapped onto various objects. The rhythms drive the configuration of the organisms: how they’re grouped, how many tentacles they have, how curly they get, what colors they are,” Mr. Dragulescu said.

Because he asked to use the actual infectious code to create his renderings, both Mr. Dragulescu and MessageLabs had to be careful not to infect his computer during the creative process.

MessageLabs plans to launch its new campaign online and in print publications. Mr. White said he plans to expand the company’s campaign to include a number of different areas, including YouTube video documentaries about the creative process, and screensavers.

MessageLabs is also organizing a series of promotional exhibitions for Mr. Dragulescu’s artwork. The shows will be held in March and April at galleries in New York, San Francisco, and London.

A brand strategist for market research firm A Pomegranate, Amanda Souter, noted that the story behind the development of the images is an essential part of the advertising package. “Alone, the images could be perceived as more beautiful than threatening,” she said.

MessageLabs plans to continually update the mugshots as malicious computer programs evolve. “If a new threat arose tomorrow, of course we would first address the hard facts, but we would also want to create a new visualization,” Mr. White said.

The company, which employs more than 100 people at its Midtown headquarters, provides computer security services to businesses such as the Bank of New York, S.C. Johnson & Son, and the petroleum company BP.