The Sixth Day (A Brit in the FBI #5)(55)
“But Radulov’s vulnerability is now available to any hacker who wants it if they’re given the appropriate code through the dark web. Sorry, Mr. Ardelean. I hate to say it, but you’re screwed. You’re going to need a complete overhaul of MATRIX and your other software packages to make them safe again, then you’ll need to convince everyone who owns the software to upgrade to the newest version. Vulnerabilities could float around for years on old computers. This is a mega leak, sir.”
Ardelean was shaking his head. He looked incredulous. “But we found the hacker, and he’s been arrested. We pushed code in to halt the attack. We contained it.”
“You did, absolutely, and your block of the manipulated code was handled perfectly. Exactly what I would have recommended, step by step. The problem is, you were too late. The code is still out there. I saw it—”
Nicholas shook his head, and Adam stopped talking immediately. No need to let Ardelean—or his father, for that matter—know the details of how he and Adam worked on these projects, that Covert Eyes had a hacker in place to do such things. Adam and Nicholas thrived on manipulating the vulnerabilities of software programs. Yes, better to keep those facts off the table.
Nicholas said, “Mr. Ardelean, do you have any disgruntled former employees who might want to take you down, who might want to see your company suffer, or who might be trying to ransom your code?”
Yes, that traitor, Temora. Ardelean rubbed the bridge of his nose, effectively hiding his eyes. He wanted a microdose. No, no, he had to keep it together. He wasn’t about to tell them about Temora. He looked up again, in control. “We have very little turnover. My people are under the strictest confidentiality agreements, of course, and can be prosecuted for any breach of those contracts.
“I will compile a list of our terminated employees for you to start investigating. I assume, Drummond, that you and Agent Caine are starting an investigation into this, which is why you’re here in London?”
Nicholas nodded. “A breach of this magnitude needs several sets of eyes. A list of your former employees would be a great help. I’d say you need to look back at least three years.”
“Of course.” Ardelean was still staring at the code. He couldn’t wait. He pulled a small box from his pocket and slipped a mint into his mouth, but it wasn’t a mint, it was a microdose. Almost immediately he felt it focus him. He nodded to all of them.
“I must go, immediately. I need to deal with this.” He stopped, shook Adam’s hand. “Thank you for finding this.” And to Harry, “Sir, I will do everything in my power to make your servers safe again, as quickly as possible. I have another patch that should hold them off while we work on a permanent solution. I’ll put it into the terminal myself the minute I get back to the office. Give me an hour before you reboot the machines in the office.”
Harry asked, “And it will fix things for how long?”
“It should last indefinitely, though there will be more to come.” Ardelean laughed and ran a hand through his hair. “I thought the update I put in was the permanent fix, until now. Mr. Pearce, I am dead serious. If you ever decide you want a job, please don’t hesitate to call. I’ll pay you triple what you’re making now.”
Adam grinned. “You hear that, Nicholas? I want a raise.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
Once Mike was sure Ardelean was out of hearing, she said, “The minute the three of you landed your starship on computer-land, you lost me, so I went ahead and put all the data on these drone assassinations into ViCAP, to see if there is anything similar in our jurisdiction.”
Harry shut the door and said as he turned back to them, “You weren’t alone, Michaela. I too got lost in, what did you call it? Computer-land. Well, that went well. At least we can be assured the systems are safe now, and we can start communicating properly again. I hate cloak-and-dagger stuff, gives me a headache. How long will it take to hear from your ViCAP?”
Nicholas said, “Not long. I was glad to see Ardelean take responsibility, though I’m convinced he lied about a Russian hacker—when in doubt, blame someone who isn’t there I guess was his thinking.” He gestured toward his father’s desk. “May I? I’d like to see the details of the patch he installed.”
“Certainly. Be my guest. What are you looking for?”
He glanced at Adam. “You want to tell him?”
Adam nodded. “I told Nicholas right before the meeting there was something strange about MATRIX. When I was looking at the tracking code, it felt wrong, like it was written in the same language as Radulov’s software.”
“So,” Nicholas said, “I’m assuming Ardelean has someone on the inside determined to bring him down. Disgruntled, former, who knows. Regardless, I have a tracker in the system that will look at the patch he provided, to be sure it’s totally clean. No sense reinfecting all the terminals if the code’s not perfect.”
Harry waved to his computer. “Take a look.”
Nicholas inserted a thumb drive into his father’s terminal, booted up. Adam came to stand behind him. The program launched, and the two men watched the screen.
Nicholas said, “This patch is complex. I’ve never seen anything like it. Wait, how can this be possible? The numbers four-zero-eight keep cropping up. Is it the hack, Adam?”