>all of the cells on death row popped open
>correctional facilities
Yeah...
Computer systems used to control federal prison facilities are riddled with vulnerabilities that might allow criminals to meddle with cell door opening mechanisms or shut down internal communications systems, according to security researchers. The vulnerabilities – which stem from flaws in industrial control systems and …
They develop a hack that can remotely open prison doors and all they can think of to do with it is warn the prisons? No rescuing political prisoners? No helping billionaire banking criminals escape justice in exchange for fat stacks of cash? No creating a doomsday virus that simultaneousness frees serial killers and disables power plants at midnight January 1, 2012?
Just wondering. Is some guy back at the Bureau of Prisons looking at display that tells him that cell block D at such-and-such prison now has cell doors unlocked because its time for lunch? And if so, why?
Sounds like these systems should be locked down and not accessible.
Still the hackers best friend.
But as others pointed out some key switches wired *directly* to the mains comm link circuits would stop a lot of this. In principal. If the jail did not leave it *permanently* switched on of course.
BTW A jail break assisted by hacking the jails security systems is a kick off event in the film version of Tom Clancy's "Netforce."
Of course at the time it looked absurd because (to me) it seemed obvious that IRL no one would *really* be that dumb. That kind of stupidity could only happen when an author needs to move the story along in a hurry.
Silly me.
This potential clusterf**k is brought to you by the words "cheap", "convenient" and "simple".