'Keep it under your hat!' Careless Talk Costs Lives
A painted steel helmet floats above the large-type line 'Keep it under your hat!', a pun that turns the soldier's helmet into a place to hide information. The tell is the red footer 'Careless talk costs lives', which attaches a death toll to ordinary conversation.
Propaganda techniques used in this poster
- Date
- 1939
- Period
- Second World War
- Made by
- His Majesty's Stationery Office for the British government; printed by J. Weiner Ltd, London
- Region
- Western and Central Europe
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Medium
- Poster
- Issuer type
- State
- Regime
- Churchill Government
- Leader
- Winston Churchill
- Audience
- Domestic public
- Purpose
- Warn or inform
- Themes
- War and the military, Security and surveillance
- Event
- World War II
- Leader
- Winston Churchill
- Source
- Identified Openly sourced: the speaker is who they say they are
- Source
- U.S. National Archives and Records Administration, Record Group 44, World War II Foreign Posters, retrieved October 3, 2026
- Rights
- Public domain (UK Crown copyright, 50 years from publication, expired before 1996; no URAA restoration)
British government (HMSO), printed by J. Weiner Ltd; U.S. National Archives, NAID 44266726 (44-PF-259).
Text on the object
"Keep it under your hat!" CARELESS TALK COSTS LIVES PRINTED FOR H.M. STATIONERY OFFICE BY J. WEINER LTD., LONDON, W.C.1. 51-8451
