Counting from Zero (32 page)

Mick set about writing a script.
 
Most of the script implemented a simple approach that he was fairly certain would fail, but he planned to hide a few lines of his real attack inside the script.
 
The botnet steganography had given him the idea!

Mick could see Turing looking over his shoulder and watching as he typed.
 
As he entered the critical lines, he turned, caught her eye, and winked at her.
 
Then he quickly scrolled the lines off the screen before she glanced back.
 
If nothing else, he would definitely get style points for this exploit, if it worked!

He finished up and got ready to execute the script.

“Ready?” Mick asked, looking around the room.
 
He hit enter, not looking at the screen.
 
He saw the others staring at the screen,
then
heard their laughter.
 
He turned to look and saw a series of error messages scroll off the screen.
 
The computer beeped, then restarted, going through
its
booting up processes: loading the BIOS, loading the OS kernel.
 
He swore loudly and profusely, as Turing walked up to him.

“Don’t take it so hard, Mick.
 
Not many could break into this computer.
 
I’m certain none of these clowns could – they definitely aren’t in your league.”
 
She looked disappointed, but at the same time seemed to be enjoying the feeling of superiority.
 
The computer finished rebooting and was back to the login prompt.

login
: |

“I don’t believe this computer even has any other accounts,” Mick snapped.
 
“That’s the only possible reason I can’t break into it.”

“Au contraire!” Turing replied.
 
“Watch...” she said, turning to the computer and proceeded to login as the ‘root’ user:

login
: root

password
: **********

She turned back to Mick and smiled sweetly at him, but was surprised at his expression, which had instantly changed from bewildered to smug.
 
“Oh SHIT!
 
You DIDN’T!” she shouted, turning back to the computer.
 
She stared at the screen, which read:

Thank you for the root password to this computer, Jasinski!

Transferring files: 1ØØ% complete.

$ |

The others looked on in disbelief.
 
One of the thickest, perhaps a boyfriend of a female hacker, asked another what had just happened.

“The tosser wrote a script that made it look like the computer crashed and rebooted – it hadn’t!
 
It was still running his script, waiting for her to enter the root password so it could login and copy all the files!
 
He didn’t even hack the computer – he just used social engineering!” a kid explained.

Mick was already thinking how he would tell the story to Kateryna.
 
During the conversation, he had figured out that Turing was most likely the mysterious Jasinski that had helped foil the Halloween attack.
 
No wonder Lars had been unsuccessful in trying to find ‘him’!
 
Turing recovered quickly.

“Very impressive, Mick, I must say.
 
And yes, I am also known as Jasinski...
 
although you have done me no favors by telling everyone here,” she replied irritably as she glanced around the room.
 
“I was worried that no one would figure out that mail server attack, although it seems your friend Lars had it covered, no doubt with help from you.”
 
She paused and became very serious.
 
“I know how to cover my tracks – something you will need to be good at from now on...
 
But you are quite good at this little game, I must say,” she said.
 
Mick gave a little bow.
 
“I am as good as my word, Mick.
 
You have the promised information.
 
One file contains an address.
 
If you want to catch those running Zed dot Kicker, you need to be there, very soon.
 
And you will also find an X.509 certificate.
 
That certificate is a Certificate Authority for Zed dot Kicker.
 
You will be able to issue a new control certificate and revoke existing certificates using it.
 
In short, you can now use it to control the botnet.”

“You have a CA certificate for the botnet?” Mick asked, incredulous.
 
“How?”

“They helped out on my P2P open source project, but then I learned what kind of a-holes they were.
 
They generated a cert for me to test a new feature.
 
I told them I revoked it when my testing was complete, but I didn’t… I don’t think they have any clue it exists.
 
I’m through with them now, and if you want to destroy their botnet, that’s fine by me.”

“Thanks for all your help, Jasinski,” Mick began.
 
“I appreciate it.
 
And thanks for the challenge… I enjoyed it.
 
Well, I’m off, then,” he said, heading towards the door.
 
She followed him.

“Wait!
 
How did you break the botnet encryption?
 
And how did you even find the botnet messages?”

“You wrote the code, didn’t you?
 
Can’t you guess?” he replied, surprised.

“Not that part – someone else wrote the crypto,” she replied.

“I see.
 
Who?”

“Dunno.
 
I never met the guy.”
 
She put her arm out to the corridor wall, blocking his path and leaned close to him.
 
“Mick, why not stay a while?
 
You interest me, and I plan to disappear in the morning and be untraceable by anyone until all this blows over,” she said, leaning toward him.

Mick did admit that he was intrigued by her, and wondered how she had discovered so much information about his past.
 
And, he did find her attractive.
 
But his thoughts were already going back to Kateryna.

“Sorry, must go...
 
Lots to do, you know, botnets to take over, et cetera, et cetera...” he explained, lifting her arm out of the way.
 
She frowned.
 
“Cheers everyone!” he called to the room, then turned and walked away.

He felt her angry eyes on his back, but kept walking out the building.

Back at the hotel, Mick examined the transferred files.
 
The location Jasinski provided was:

2Ø3 Knyazhyi Zaton St

Osokorky

He looked up the city and swore when he saw the location.

How the hell can I get to Ukraine?

He knew he could not risk traveling using his British passport or he might find himself detained.
 
He paced the room, back and forth, thinking, but nothing came to him.
 
Lars still wasn’t back, and he was beginning to wonder if perhaps he had made other arrangements.
 
Mick sent a message to Kateryna saying they needed to talk, and was surprised by an immediate reply.

What is she doing awake at this hour?

Mick invited her up to the room, and she accepted.

As Mick let Kateryna in a few moments later, he smelled her perfume as she walked by, and began to doubt whether this was such a good idea.
 
He turned on a pseudo white noise generator on his computer in case someone was listening in.

“So, what’s up?” she asked, sitting down on the window ledge, swinging her legs and glancing out at the view of the London streets.
 
She was wearing jeans and a knit sweater.

“You won’t believe what I did tonight...” he began, and told her the story.
 
At the end, she was almost on the floor laughing.

“I can’t believe she fell for that!
 
That’s the oldest trick!”

“Yep, perhaps too old for someone as young as her...
 
plus she was so sure that I’d fail that it didn’t take much to convince her.”

“So what information did you get?” she asked.
 
Mick took a deep breath.

“Kat, I need to go to Ukraine,” he began.
 
Her jaw dropped.
 
“I have the address where the botnet developers and controllers are located.
 
It’s in Kiev.
 
I need to get there in the next few days to try to stop them from launching their big attack.”

“You want to go to Ukraine, and do what?”

“I need to shutdown this botnet and find the people responsible for it, and I think I’m the only one who can do it.”

“So let’s say I buy this, which I don’t by the way, how are you going to get there?”

“I don’t know, I guess I could sail to Sevastopol on the Black Sea.”

“That’s not going to work.
 
It would take way too long.”

“I know, I know.”

“The train is the best way to get there, at least for someone who can’t fly.”

“I agree, but there are lots of borders between here and there.
 
I don’t think my odds of making it there are very good, especially if more forged email threats come out,” he replied, referring to the fake email Miles had refused to distribute.

They sat in silence for more than a few minutes.
 
Finally, Kateryna spoke.

“I have a thought,” she began.

“What?”

“When I arrived here, I discovered my husband’s passport in a side pocket of my carry on bag.
 
I think he left it there from his last trip to Canada,” she paused to get his reaction, and got none.
 
“So, perhaps you are unaware that your face is somewhat similar to his?
 
You are a little taller, but not too much and he wears glasses, but...”

“Kat, are you suggesting...
 
are you suggesting that I travel using your husband’s passport?”

“I’m not suggesting you travel alone.
 
We would travel together.
 
I’m sure it would work...
 
we’d just need to add some highlights to your hair, and get some glasses to match...”

“No way – thanks, but no.
 
There’s no way I’m getting you involved in this.
 
Anyway, that is really breaking the law.
 
Up ‘til now, I’ve just bent the law a little.
 
Thank you for suggesting it, but I’ll need to find another way.”

“Such as?” she said, putting her hands on her hips.

“I don’t know.
 
I’ll think of something.
 
Maybe I could get a fake passport or something.”

“And that’s not illegal?
 
And besides, you know they do automatic facial recognition at British airports, so regardless of what your passport says, you’ll be picked up.”

“True.”

“Well then,” she said, getting off the
window sill
.
 
She walked over to Mick, standing right in front of him.
 
She touched his arm, imploring him.
 
“Mick, why are you so opposed to this plan?
 
Is it because of breaking the law, or...
 
is it because of me?”
 
Mick didn’t answer.
 
He studied her face, bathed in the lamplight, trying to read her thoughts.

“Um...
 
it is a little of both,” he replied carefully.
 
“Traveling under someone else’s passport is wrong.
 
And traveling as...
 
as your husband, also feels wrong.”

“Mick, I don’t think you are being truthful.
 
I don’t think it will feel wrong for us to travel together...
 
I’m far more worried about how
right
it might feel...”

“Yeah, that too...” Mick muttered in reply.

“I think we can deal with that – we’re both grownups.
 
It would be silly to let that stand in the way of you doing what you need to do,” she replied.

“Perhaps,” he replied.
 
Mick wondered how much more of this conversation he could stand.
 
He thought hard about how he could bring this uncomfortable situation to a close.
 
It occurred to him that Lars might get the wrong idea if he returned at this moment.