Authors: Bobby Akart
“It was excellent cyber-detective work on your part, Miss O’Shea, to expose their identities,” added Morgan.
Rare praise
. Steven unexpectedly squeezed her thigh under the desk, giving her a jolt in more ways than one. “Continue, Malcolm.”
“The Zero Day Gamers have earned a reputation amongst their fellow hackers as being expert in attacking complex, secured servers like those associated with the Nevada Energy power grid and the Callaway Nuclear Power Plant in Missouri. Each of the cyber attacks they perform vary in scope and purpose. It shows versatility in methodology that can be of use to us.”
Katie resisted the urge to ask—
what are you guys up to
?
“How?”
Thanks, Steven
.
“We will be hiring the Zero Day Gamers for a task that has a national security component,” replied Morgan. “By its nature, it must be covert and carried out through Aegis. There can be no United States government involvement, or
knowledge
, Miss O’Shea.”
Katie instinctively covered her ears, which drew a rare laugh from Morgan.
“The purpose of hiring the group is still yet undetermined,” continued Lowe. “Our first goal is to make contact with them and get their attention. They are normally hired anonymously through hacktivist websites. Their payment is made via money transfers to a variety of offshore accounts. We will be taking a different approach.”
Morgan stood and watched the heavy rain blow against the windows, obscuring their view of the State House.
“The term
Trojan horse
has changed its meaning over the years,” said Morgan. “Initially, it had a military connotation. Today, it is more widely used in relation to cyber warfare. There is a variant of this concept called a Stalking Horse offer. Are you familiar with this term?”
Both Katie and Steven shook their heads.
“In the political world, a Stalking Horse candidate is used by a party to advance their choice of candidate by inserting another candidate into the race in order to split the vote of a rival. Arguably, the 1992 candidacy of Ross Perot acted as a stalking horse, insuring the successful election of Bill Clinton. In the present campaign, Donald Trump’s run as an independent would similarly assist Hillary.”
“Makes sense,” said Katie. “We have employed similar tactics in setting up a mole within an organization or a successor to be used by the CIA during regime change.”
“It is designed to conceal someone’s real intentions under a false pretext. We will employ the Stalking Horse tactics in our approach to the Zero Day Gamers,” said Lowe, turning to Steven. “You and I will walk in their front door and make them an attractive offer.”
“One they cannot refuse,” added Morgan.
Chills ran up Katie’s spine.
Chapter 46
August 19, 2016
The Hack House
Binney Street
East Cambridge, Massachusetts
Steven and Lowe exited the elevator and made their way down the hallway to the Zero Day Gamers loft. Both men wore suits and were armed although they did not anticipate any need for their weapons today. A microphone and camera were hidden inside Lowe’s tie clasp.
“Control, final radio check, copy,” said Steven.
“Five-by-five.”
“Radio check,” said Lowe.
“Five-by-five, sir.”
Steven stopped in the hallway. “Why does he get a
sir
?”
“He writes the checks. Move along.”
“Roger that,” said Steven as he and Lowe approached the entrance. Both men concealed their ear pieces. Only Lowe’s microphone was important at this point.
During the briefing, surveillance located on the top floor of the Third Square Apartments confirmed Lau and his three assistants were in the loft. Steven and Lowe expected them to be surprised by the visit. Lowe would take the lead and attempt to separate Lau so they could talk privately. Eyes and ears were on from many directions. Aegis was very thorough.
“Allow me,” said Steven as he opened the door for Lowe to pass into the loft. Fakhri, Malvalaha and Walthaus were working at computer stations and quickly spun around in their chairs. Lowe moved into the room and Steven quickly conducted a threat assessment. As expected, it was a bunch of harmless computer geeks. Steven observed Lau carefully as he emerged from a bedroom turned office.
“I believe you must be lost, gentlemen,” said Lau. “This is private property and we don’t accept visitors.” Lau spread his arms apart as he approached as if to herd Steven and Lowe out of the loft.
“No, Professor Lau, we’re not lost,” said Lowe, handing Lau a bogus business card with his left hand while extending his right to shake hands. “We are here to see you. My name is Dennis Troutman and I’m here on behalf of the Center for Infrastructure Protection.”
Lau was clearly caught off guard. His assistants looked frightened.
Good
.
“But, wait, I don’t understand,” said Lau. “What do you want with me? How did you know I maintained an office in this building?” Lau was sweating, obviously nervous.
“Perhaps we should speak in private,” said Lowe. “Your office?”
“Yes, sure.” Lau’s eyes darted around nervously.
“May my driver wait out here with your associates?”
“Yes, of course. Would you like something to drink?”
Steven shook his head and moved against a wall where he had a full view of all the hands and activities of the Zero Day Gamers. He was playing the intimidating role well.
“This way, please,” said Lau. He shrugged his shoulders and led Lowe through the doorway.
For the next twenty minutes, Steven didn’t speak a word and the Gamers didn’t tap a key. Lowe finally emerged from the office with Lau, who was all smiles.
“Professor, it has been a real pleasure.” Lowe extended his hand and the men shook.
“Yes, absolutely,” replied Lau. “I am sure my associates will be interested in hearing the details of your proposal. I will call you at this number as requested.”
The Gamers still appeared to be nervous although a noticeable sense of relief appeared over the face of Walthaus when his professor emerged all smiles.
“Good. Oh, one more thing. I have something for each of you.” Lowe reached into his pocket and handed a gold coin to each of the Zero Day Gamers.
“Hey, this is the new Denarium Bitcoin,” said Walthaus. “They replaced the old defunct Casascius cryptocoin.”
“That’s correct, young man,” said Lowe. “These are issued by one of the largest Bitcoin exchanges in the world and are considered the gold standard in cryptocurrency. Consider this a token of our gratitude for your assistance and a symbol of great things to come.”
It also has a tracking device to help us keep up with your dumb asses.
Steven was impressed with Lowe’s skills as an undercover operative. He played the role perfectly and the body language of the four members of the Zero Day Gamers was telling.
“Driver, let’s go.”
I’m gonna kick his ass when we get out of here.
Chapter 47
August 19, 2016
The Hack House
Binney Street
East Cambridge, Massachusetts
“What the hell just happened?” asked Malvalaha. “Are those guys for real?”
“Were they feds?”
“I’ve never held a bitcoin,” said Walthaus.
“How did they find us?”
Lau’s head was still swirling. He had more questions than answers. Although he was being peppered with questions from the Zero Day Gamers, he was oblivious as he walked to the plate-glass windows in the loft and stared mindlessly across Binney Street towards MIT. Receiving the offer to teach at the famed technology institute was a pipe dream fulfilled. The job could be intense and consuming. The peer pressure was fierce. Over time he earned the respect of his faculty colleagues and thrived in their academic environment.
MIT was a famed research institution and its faculty was expected to produce innovative advancements in their field. Twenty years ago, the provost recognized the extraordinary expense associated with research endeavors as well as the time constraints placed on the faculty. The graduate students became an easily accessible labor pool for the professors. As Lau entered into his second job as a hacker for hire, the graduate students became integral in the expansion and success of the Zero Day Gamers. They were now going to receive a paycheck for their efforts which was retirement worthy.
“Professor, Professor, are you okay? What’s wrong?” asked Fakhri as she gently shook him by the shoulders.
Lau snapped out of his trance. He cleared his throat. “Nothing, everything is good. More than good, actually. I think we have a new client.” He was now beaming, which produced smiles on all of his loyal graduate students.
“Tell us!” insisted Walthaus as he flipped his bitcoin in the air—choosing heads or tails.
“I don’t know where to start. There is so much to discuss from the short conversation.”
Walthaus flipped the coin again. “How much? There’s a good starting point.” He had really matured since his first successful hack in the spring. Now it was all about the payday.
“Sure, why not,” Lau started as he rolled the bitcoin through his fingers like a high-stakes poker player analyzing his hand. “One million dollars in Bitcoin, obviously.”
“Wow!” exclaimed Malvalaha. “Nice payout. I’m going to buy that Porsche we talked about, Herm.”
“Sweet,” replied Walthaus. The two exchanged high fives.
“Each.” Lau paused to gauge their reactions. This would generate some high fives.
“What? Each?” questioned Fakhri. She approached Lau as if about to cry.
“Yes, Anna. Each. We will each be paid one million dollars for this job.” Then Fakhri cried. As did Walthaus, who fell into his chair with his face buried in his hands.
“Do you know what this can do for my family?” asked Fakhri through the tears.
“For all of our families,” added Malvalaha. He and Fakhri were hugging while Walthaus continued to shake his head in disbelief. He was muttering.
“Are you okay, Walthaus?” asked Lau. He leaned over and placed his hands on the young graduate assistant’s shoulders.
“Who do we have to kill?” he asked. A sudden look of apprehension came over the faces of Fakhri and Malvalaha.
“We’re not going to kill anyone, guys. Relax. We are going to do what we do best—send a message. In fact, you could even say we are going to perform a valuable public service.”
“White hat?” asked Malvalaha.
“You could say that,” replied Lau. He rolled a chair from one of the computer stations and sat, indicating Fakhri and Malvalaha to do the same. “Let me give you the rundown of the project and let’s brainstorm some ideas.”
“I for one don’t care what it is. If their money is good, I’m in,” said Walthaus. He was now twirling his bitcoin on the desk like a kid’s top.
“You are so greedy, Walthaus,” said Fakhri. “It’s the new girlfriend, isn’t it?”
Malvalaha laughed with Fakhri.
“She has needs and wants,” replied Walthaus. He puffed out his chest with pride.
“I bet she does,” said Fakhri dryly.
She clearly didn’t approve of Wendy
. Lau cleared his throat to get the Gamers back into focus.
“Listen up, everybody, if we are going to do this—” said Lau, who was interrupted by laughter. “What?”
“A million-dollar payday and you seriously wonder if we’re in?” asked Walthaus. “Hell yeah I’m in.”
“Me too!”
“No question.”
“Then pay attention, we’ll be on a deadline. Everything must be a go by no later than August 31 or we get paid nothing. Everyone good with that?”
“Yeah.” Lau turned his cap backwards and laid out the details.
Their client, the Center for Infrastructure Protection, was in the process of securing funding for the Tres Amigas SuperStation. The purpose of the project was to tie the United States power grid together via three separate five-gigawatt superconductive high-voltage power lines. These power lines would permit the flow of energy throughout America via high-temperature superconductor wire. Tres Amigas would act as a power market hub of sorts, enabling the buying and selling of electricity between the three major power grids servicing the U.S. The entire cost of the project was in excess of two billion dollars but would generate many times that in profits for the owners of Tres Amigas.
“This all sounds like an interesting concept,” said Malvalaha. “How would we be involved?”
Lau walked to the kitchen to grab a Barq’s Root Beer. “Anyone?”
“No, thanks,” replied Walthaus.
Lau paused to take a sip and let out a little belch. Discussing Congress did that to him.
“Tres Amigas, via our client’s think tank, is going to lobby Congress this fall for funding,” said Lau. “They want us to help raise awareness of the vulnerability of the U.S. power grid to solar flares, nuclear EMPs and cyber attacks. Ironic, isn’t it?” Lau took another sip. His throat was dry.
“Fear is a great motivator. If we can scare Congress into acting, they will get their funding. Our job is to crash the grid.”
“You mean like we did in Vegas?” asked Fakhri.
“Except this project will be for the public good,” replied Lau. “It is very straightforward in its scope, but complex in its execution.”
“Very white hat,” repeated Malvalaha. He was chomping on Nicorette gum as part of his smoking cessation plan. His next step was electronic cigarettes. “In a way, we could redeem ourselves for the aftermath of Vegas.”
“We couldn’t predict how the public would react,” defended Fakhri. “The unions made it worse and never disclosed their involvement in the plan.” Lau was angry after the Vegas hack of the Nevada Energy servers. The hack was successful and received accolades online, but the union blindsided him with their staged walkout, leaving the casino patrons to fend for themselves. Lives were lost as a result and he vowed to be more careful. As a result, the American Airlines takeover and the Callaway Nuclear hack were of very short duration by design. He was toying with the targets. During his private conversation with Troutman, he insisted on brevity and Troutman agreed.
We just want to get their attention
, Troutman insisted.