Cyber Attack (21 page)

“When the inspector entered the facility numerous times this weekend, he connected to the Callaway internal network,” said Walthaus. “Once he accessed the main servers to gather data, our Trojan was carried from servers to stations throughout the nuclear power plant. Aurora is waiting on the clock to hit 11:11 Central Daylight Time.”

“Why 11:11?” asked Lau.

Walthaus sat up in his chair to note the location of the ISS on the NASA live feed. “From Missouri’s perspective, the International Space Station will appear at twenty-three degrees on the north-northwest horizon and five minutes later it will disappear at ten degrees above the east horizon. The ISS will have maximum exposure over Callaway at 11:11 CDT.”

“At 11:11, Aurora will be unleashed,” added Fakhri.

Lau was very familiar with Aurora. The Aurora Project was a 2007 research effort led by the Idaho National Laboratory, demonstrating how easy it was to hack elements in the nation’s critical infrastructure such as power and water systems. In 2015, in response to a Freedom of Information Act request about Operation Aurora, an unrelated cyber attack initiated by the Chinese, some government official inadvertently released more than eight hundred pages of detailed documents and schematics related to the Aurora Project.

The Aurora Project exposed a vulnerability common to many electrical generators, water pumps and nuclear power facilities wherein an attacker remotely opened and closed key circuit breakers, throwing the internal machinery of the facility out of sync with other timed functions within the utility.

Lau recalled a report on the release of the details of Aurora. The word used by the head of Homeland Security was
breathtaking
. The Aurora report included three pages of critical infrastructure locations that could bring the United States power grid to virtual collapse. The report revealed, for example, which Pacific Gas and Electric substations you could shut down to create a cascading collapse of the entire West Coast power grid.

“Perpetrating an Aurora attack is not easy,” added Malvalaha. “Based upon our research of publicly available information, this will be the first. I suspect it will send shockwaves throughout the world.”

“It will certainly please our client, who has paid handsomely,” added Lau. “What happens when Aurora is activated?”

“After the June visit by the inspector, we analyzed the internal power system interconnections of Calloway,” replied Walthaus. “The data downloaded onto the Huff & Huff servers for reporting purposes provided all the information we needed on load and impedance conditions, access alarms and their passwords.”

“It’s 11:09 local time,” said Lau. “Let me start the recording.”

“The Aurora malware is set to shut down the generators connected to the Calloway turbines shortly,” said Walthaus. “When it does, most of Missouri will go dark, leaving a huge black void in the middle of the United States. In about ten minutes, the malware will release control of the system pending a reboot by Callaway’s engineers.”

“We also have developed a calling card for you, Professor,” said Malvalaha. “A surprise.”

“What did you do?”

“We created a hybrid of the Prism Software used by Revival Control Systems,” replied Malvalaha. “Revival Control is the company that developed the software for the computer-generated Christmas light shows set to music.”

“Okaaay,” said Lau as his voice trailed off.
It’s Christmas in July
.

“You’ll see.”

Lau heard Fakhri’s watch alarm go off and immediately drew his attention to the television monitor. At night, the view of the United States is very telling of its population density. The lights illuminated the majority of the eastern half of the country and the extreme West Coast. The western half of the U.S. and Mexico was predominantly dark. As the clock struck 11:11 in Missouri, an irregular dark shape appeared on the screen. It gave the appearance of a black hole in a sea of lights. Lau watched in awe as the ISS made its way across the central United States.

Suddenly, after a minute of pitch blackness, the lights began to flicker in a slow, methodical pattern. The flashing pattern repeated itself until there was darkness again. The pattern seemed familiar to Lau, but he couldn’t pinpoint it.

--.. . .-. --- / -.. .- -.-- / --. .- -- . .-. …

“Do you see the pattern, Professor?”

“I do, it’s repeating,” he replied. “Tell me what it means.”

“It’s Morse code, sir,” said Walthaus. “It reads
Zero Day Gamers
.”

Chapter 33

July 9, 2016

100 Beacon

Boston, Massachusetts

“I’m sorry the Sox-Yankees game got rained out,” said Sarge. “I am not sorry about the alternative festivities.” Julia draped her leg over Sarge as the two lay in bed next to each other. Her nakedness felt good against him, as always.

“We were both soaking wet and the bed looked inviting.” She laid her head on his chest.

Sarge rubbed his fingers through her still-wet hair and stared mindlessly at the start of
Justice with Judge Jeanine
on the Fox News Channel.

“They’re playing a doubleheader tomorrow, but I think I’ll pass,” said Sarge.

“I’ll play a doubleheader with you.” Julia was still wound up and ready to play ball. Sarge paused the television and enjoyed Julia for a little while longer. After they both finished, she left to get them a glass of wine. He followed her silhouette as she walked away.
I am one lucky guy
.

Sarge stared at the screen for a moment. When Sarge first started following Jeanine Pirro’s program, she annoyed him a little bit. Perhaps she was too brash and combative. He couldn’t put his finger on it. Over time, she grew on him, especially for her raising awareness of the threats to our power grid.

Tonight her special guests included retired General Thomas McInerney, the founder of a consulting firm dealing with high-tech companies, and Frank J. Gaffney, founder of the Center for Security Policy. Both of these men repeatedly sounded the alarm of the fragility of our power grid and its susceptibility to terrorist attack. These two men, along with former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, were instrumental in the formation of the EMP Commission, which brought before the public eye the threats we face to the grid.

Now, a new threat to America’s critical infrastructure emerged in the form of cyber terror. The President made a major policy speech at the NATO summit in Warsaw, Poland, today. Julia returned with the wine.

“I see you forgot all about me,” said Julia. She handed him his glass with a kiss on the cheek. He patted her lovingly on the rear.

“I’m busted. I traded you in for my pal Judge Jeanine.”

“I know better. What did the President say in Warsaw today?”

“If you’ll hold me, I’ll let you watch.”

“What a guy,” she said. Sarge pushed play.

“
This summit comes at a crucial time for the Alliance as the tectonic plates of Euro-Atlantic security have shifted both in the East and the South. We are already implementing the biggest reinforcement of our collective defenses since the end of the Cold War. While in Warsaw, the member states of NATO will chart the course for the Alliance’s adaptation to the new security environment so that NATO remains ready to defend all Allies against any threat from any direction.

“We will build on our valuable work with partner nations to keep all of our neighborhoods stable. We will strengthen the bond between Europe and North America on which our Alliance is founded. Since joining in 1999, Poland has been a staunch ally of NATO and I thank them for hosting our meeting.”

Sarge paused the television.

“He sounds like he’s justifying a build-up of NATO forces in the region,” said Sarge. “Did you notice the phrase
biggest reinforcement of our collective defenses
?”

“I did. I also caught the caveat
against any threat from any direction
. Katie tells me the White House is fed up with these cyber attacks. They tried to diminish them once as cyber
vandalism
. Cyber terror escalated to new levels Monday night when the hacker group Zero Day Gamers took over the computers of a nuclear power plant.”

“Very brazen and arrogant,” said Sarge. “They threw their abilities in our faces with the Morse code stunt.”

“Katie tells me the President ordered an entire task force to hunt them down. She has been named to head it up.”

“Good for her! She’ll keep us posted, I’m sure.” Sarge continued the show.

“
In cyberspace, where the risk of getting caught is low and the rewards are potentially great, these hackers are driven by simple economic forces. Breaking into computer networks, whether public or private, generates a payday. I intend to up the consequences and penalties for this activity. The member nations of NATO will make bad actors pay a price that will far outweigh the benefit
.

“
Let me be clear. What might be recommended for one scenario is not necessarily recommended in another. But from this point forward, there are many options on the table, including the use of conventional military weapons
.

“
Today, I am urging my fellow NATO leaders to order a ramp-up of their cyber-defense capabilities. Make no mistake, a cyber attack against a NATO member state will be considered military aggression and could trigger a collective military response
.”

“Well, there you have it,” said Sarge. “I’ve always asked the question
when does a cyber attack become an act of war
? The President just said it depends on the scenario.”

“That’s pretty nebulous.”

“Well, it was a speech, but you always have to question the man’s intentions. I don’t trust him. When he talks tough militarily, I believe he has ulterior motives.”

“His biggest problem is proof,” said Julia. “These computer hackers are shrewd and easily cover their tracks. A particular cyber attack may have all the markings of the Chinese, but it may simply be initiated by a pimple-faced teenager in mommy’s basement.”

“This is a new era, Julia. For the first time in history, the correlation between the capital spent and the military power it produces is undermined. Cyber attacks are low-cost alternatives to physical attacks, providing lesser nation-states a coequal ability to bring a superpower to its knees.”

“For what purpose?” she asked.

“Never underestimate the power of jealousy and envy to destroy what others have.”

Never underestimate that
.

Chapter 34

July 16, 2016

Triple Q Ranch, Prescott Peninsula

Quabbin Reservoir, Massachusetts

Steven and Brad walked the entire fence line in about an hour. As part of a military training exercise, Brad used 3
^rd
Battalion’s Logistical Support Regiment and their Caterpillar D5 bulldozers to clear a two-mile-long, thirty-foot-wide swath through the forest about a half mile south of Highway 202.

Brad suggested a company called Fiber Fence to Donald. After the Homeland Security boys paid their visit several months ago, Brad learned the Fort Devens perimeter fence was deemed inadequate to protect the base in the event of social unrest. The bid specifications for the project were released by the GAO, but Brad knew it would take years to come to fruition. After reviewing the specs, he researched the fiber-optic perimeter fencing systems.

A fiber-optic system could detect and locate intruders anywhere along a fence up to ten miles long. The two-mile span and limited availability of personnel was a concern for Brad. The opti-mag sensing system generated an alert to the guard shack when something caused a disturbance to the optical fiber or the trip devices, which were attached at varying heights.

As an added security measure, fiber-optic cameras were installed along the perimeter, which provided live feeds to both the guard shacks and to a control room located within the main facility. Donald designed a dedicated solar array for the perimeter security system and encased all critical electronics in hardened compartments for protection against any form of electromagnetic pulse.

“DQ gets things done,” said Steven. “You know I bust his balls a lot, but I have a shit ton of respect for him. His dedication to preparedness and attention to detail will save all of our collective asses one day.”

“I agree,” said Brad. “Donald studied every aspect of the Triple Q before he started. He envisioned every contingency and tried to account for it. He once said to me, ‘Every morning I wake up and ask myself, if the shit hit the fan while I was sleeping, what prep do I wish I had?’ Then he gets it. He’s applied the same commitment to benefit us.”

The men left the entrance and drove along the western shore of Prescott Peninsula and admired the serenity of the woods. Closed to the public for almost ten years, the woods of Prescott Peninsula began to overtake the gravel roads bearing names like Rattlesnake Den and Sunk Brook. The west side of the Quabbin Reservoir hugged the shoreline but was only a thousand feet across.

“I’m comfortable with our security at the front of the peninsula,” said Brad. “Securing the miles of shoreline will be a challenge. Too many patrol boats will attract attention from across the shore.” The men waved to three of Brad’s men who were on patrol. By design, they wore hiking gear but carried concealed sidearms. It was not time for uniforms and heavy firepower—
yet
.

“I’ve given this some thought and talked to my friend Drew about this,” said Steven. “He’s from Tennessee and fishes a lot. He recommended a company called Stroker Boats near Knoxville. We’ve acquired a dozen nondescript bass boats custom designed to suit our purposes. The Triple Q Ranch has its own navy.”

“Well, Admiral Sargent, tell me more.”

“These all look like typical bass boats, painted in various shades of camo. They have a large open bow, which will allow for gear storage, and the boats can easily handle four personnel. In place of the customary pedestal-mounted boat seats, we retrofitted the pedestal to allow for a Ma Deuce to be attached.”