Mad Dog - First Strike Ch. 13

13 - Analysis:

"Is there any chance that this will be done and dusted by lunch?" Dirty Harriet asked and looked at her watch, "it's almost noon now."

"it takes as long as it takes," I shrugged.

"Yeah, it looks as if this prat has has coded their nick into the script," Cilla scoffed.

"! suppose that it's their little inside joke, but it may be about to backfire on them. I'll zap it over to you VJ to see if you can decrypt it and suss out who it is."

She and VJ were at two computer terminals set up Colossus. A big, wall-mounted monitor kept showing blocks of green glowing computer script on black. It was like something from the Matrix.

All the lights were off except for the glow of the monitors and two small desk lights. The only other sound was the hum of the fans cooling computers and the click of fingers on keyboards.

Vikram and Cilla were beginning the analysis of the data we'd downloaded from the AnalitIQ's server. They were so engrossed in what they were doing that I could've announced that either one of them had won an obscene amount on the lottery and they wouldn't have noticed.

"Its like a foreign bloody language," Dirty Harriet whispered, "do you have any idea what they're saying?"

"Nope," I shook my head.

"But isn't this want you did in the Royal Signals," she asked. "I mean it is, isn't it?"

I shook my head in answer.

"I wasn't in cyberwarfare, what my mob did was battlefield electronic warfare," I explained. "Basically our job was to locate, monitor, intercept and disrupt enemy comms network transmissions."

"Oh."

I decided to take pity on Dirty Harriet.

"Look, as you know we located the server's physical location, and that revealed evidence that they are linked to the guys who hacked our drone," I explained. "After some background research we discovered that both the office suite and domain name were rented to AnalitIQ LLC, a company registered in the Turks and Caicos Islands..."

"Anonymously I assume."

"Yeah, but it isn't that important really. See, one of the things that the Russians do..."

"This is Red Storm, yes?"

"Yes, that's their online identity," I nodded. "One of the things they specialize in is creating and selling checkable fake identities. Basically through online identity theft. Oh, and they're all backed up by all the documentation needed to get genuine ID - driving licenses and passports - that kind of thing. So any name on the lease or the articles of incorporation, it'd probably have been as kosher as a sausage roll at a Bah Mitzvah buffet."

Swann snorted at my attempt at humour.

"So this is an attempt to find usable intel," Swann nodded sagely, "but you don't expect to find this hacker's real identity do you?"

"Nah, there's no chance of that happening," I shook my head, "but if we can discover their nick then we can link that to stuff they've done in the past and have a better idea who is responsible."

"But they've got his nick now, all they have to do is decrypt it."

"Got it!" VJ snapped, "the name was encrypted, so I ran an elliptical algorithm."

"Well hello 0R4CL3,"Cilla crowed, "you may call yourself the Oracle but I bet you didn't foresee this, did ya?"

"Oracle, he was the hacker behind the 2015 American military wives death threats campaign," I mused thoughtfully.

Mack told me about that, five wives of military officers received death threats from a group that called itself the CyberCaliphate, they claimed to be an ISIS affiliate. The NSA tracked it back to Oracle.

"Yes," Swann nodded in agreement, "Russian social media trolls have been known to hype and rumour monger the threat of of potential Islamic State terror attacks on US soil in order to sow fear and political tension."

"Look, these guys aren't social media trolls," I told her, "I can't stress that enough."

"OK, OK," she sighed in resignation, "cyberterrorists then."

"Nope, not that either," I replied. "I can't make this clear enough, if these guys are in any way shape or form Russian, they're linked to the GRU. This is covert cyberintelligence."

" But why the GRU?" She snapped back. "Why not the FSB or SVR?"

The FSB and SVR used to be one organisation, known to all, mainly thanks to spy films, as the KGB. After the iron curtain fell on the last act of the Cold War, the KGB got split in two. The FSB is concerned with counter espionage in Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States. The SVR is a foreign intelligence service.

"Ah, trust me, this isn't something they'd do, they just aren't interested in cyberintelligence as means of doing anything other than gathering open source intel about targets. In that extent, they have much in common with both MI-5 and MI-6. The GRU, being military, are very interested in the weaponising of the internet."

"Oh," was all she said.

However, learning had taken place. I hoped.

"Hang on!"Cilla suddenly said, "what's this?"

"What've you got there dude?" VJ asked urgently.

I didn't like the sudden note of alarm in their voices.

"What's happening guys?" I demanded.

"It looks like there's malware here on the server," Cilla said.

"Is it defensive?" I asked.

"I don't think so..."Cilla replied, "... in fact it doesn't look as if it's been activated yet..."

"Yeah I got it," VJ replied. "It looks like its spyware."

"Spyware, its a type of malware that aims at gathering information..."

"There's no need to patronise me," Dirty Harriet cut me short, "I am aware what spyware is."

"Any idea who the target is?" I asked.

"No, not yet," VJ said, "it'll take time, I'll have to comb through the server's directory line by line, which is a balls ache, but I reckon we can get it eventually."

"Eventually isn't good enough," Dirty Harriet snapped. "I want solid intel by close of business today. Michael, you will report to me on what we have so far."

"Yes ma'am."

I couldn't help myself, I used the 'M' word. Dirty Harriet smiled slowly, evilly.

And then Kim, Dirty Harriet's PA rushed into colossus.

"I'm sorry to disturb you, but it's urgent," she gasped. "There's something happening at the RAF station in Nevada."