I was a rookie reporter in the 00s

Chapter 275 Hacker Incident

As night fell, the city lights dotted the darkness like stars. Zhang Wanqing sat in her newspaper office, her fingers pounding away at the keyboard. A report on cybersecurity flashed across the screen. She rubbed her eyes and glanced up at the wall clock. It was almost ten o'clock. Fu Siyuan was still typing away at his computer, his fingers moving swiftly as if in a race against time.

"Wanqing, take a look at this." Fu Siyuan's voice broke the silence in the office.

Zhang Wanqing stood up and walked over to Fu Siyuan's computer. A news report flashed on the screen: All computer systems of a well-known gaming company, Star Games, had been hacked, and all data had been lost.

"This is big news." Fu Siyuan's tone was filled with excitement. "We have to investigate."

Zhang Wanqing nodded. "That's right. There must be a story behind a large company like this being hacked."

They quickly contacted Li Wei. Although he was no longer a police officer, his insight and experience were still indispensable. After receiving the call, Li Wei quickly rushed to the newspaper office.

"Xinghui Games was hacked?" Li Wei frowned. "I know this company. Their games are very popular in the market. They must have suffered heavy losses from this hack."

"We'll go investigate tomorrow," Zhang Wanqing said. "Fu Siyuan, please sort out the relevant information first. I'll contact the company and see if they can arrange for us to go in."

The next morning, Zhang Wanqing, Fu Siyuan, and Li Wei arrived at Xinghui Gaming. The company building shone brightly in the sunlight, but a tense atmosphere permeated the entrance. The security guards were on high alert, and every person entering and leaving was subject to rigorous inspection.

"We are reporters, here to investigate this hacker attack." Zhang Wanqing showed her press card.

The security guard nodded and let them into the building. In the company's reception room, they met the head of the public relations department, Ms. Zhao. She looked to be in her thirties, well-dressed, with a professional smile on her face.

"Welcome, journalists," Ms. Zhao greeted them warmly. "This incident has had a significant impact on our company, and we hope to explain the situation to the public through the media."

"Ms. Zhao, can you tell us the details of this incident?" Zhang Wanqing asked.

Ms. Zhao nodded. "Okay. It happened last night, around ten o'clock. Our server was suddenly hacked. All computer systems were compromised and all data was wiped out. We've contacted the police and a professional cybersecurity company and are fully investigating."

"Are there any suspects?" Fu Siyuan asked.

Ms. Zhao shook her head. "Not yet. However, our technical team is analyzing the source of the attack and hopes to find some clues."

"Can we talk to your technicians?" Li Wei interrupted.

Miss Zhao hesitated for a moment, then nodded: "Okay, I'll take you to meet our technical director."

The technical director was a middle-aged man in his forties named Chen Ming. He looked a little tired, but his eyes were determined.

"Hello, Director Chen," Zhang Wanqing said with a smile. "We'd like to know the details of this hacker attack."

Chen Ming nodded. "Okay. This attack was very complex. The hackers used a new type of virus that directly penetrated our firewall. Our data backup system was also destroyed, so the losses were very heavy."

"Is it possible that this was done by an insider?" Li Wei asked directly.

Chen Ming shook his head. "We've checked the insiders and found nothing suspicious. This attack was clearly premeditated, and the hackers are very skilled."

"Have you found any clues?" Fu Siyuan asked.

Chen Ming was silent for a moment, then said, "We found a strange IP address that had attempted to connect to our server several times before the attack. However, this IP address was disguised through a proxy server, making it difficult to trace its source."

"Is it possible that a competitor is behind this?" Zhang Wanqing put forward her own guess.

Chen Ming shook his head. "We are also considering this possibility, but we haven't found any evidence yet. However, we will continue to investigate and hope to find some clues."

"Okay, thank you Director Chen," Zhang Wanqing said. "We will continue to pay attention to the progress of this matter."

After leaving the technical department, Zhang Wanqing, Fu Siyuan and Li Wei were discussing in the company's corridor.

"This hacker attack looks very professional, but I think there must be something fishy going on," said Fu Siyuan.

"That's right." Li Wei nodded. "We have to start from the inside and see if there are any suspicious employees."

"Then what should we do next?" Zhang Wanqing asked.

"We can talk to the company's employees first to see if we can find any clues." Li Wei suggested.

"Good idea." Zhang Wanqing agreed. "Let's split up. Fu Siyuan will interview the company's ordinary employees, and Li Wei and I will go to the company's management."

So, the three of them split up and began their investigation. Fu Siyuan wandered through the company's various departments, chatting with employees. He discovered that while everyone was shocked by the hack, no one seemed to know the specific details.

At the same time, Zhang Wanqing and Li Wei came to the company's conference room and had an in-depth conversation with the company's management. They learned that Xinghui Games was indeed facing some difficulties recently, but there was no obvious competitor that would do such a thing.

"I think we need to expand the scope of our investigation," Li Wei said. "This hacker attack is definitely not accidental. There must be a larger conspiracy behind it."

"You're right." Zhang Wanqing nodded. "We need to investigate both inside and outside the company to see if we can find some clues."

At this moment, Fu Siyuan's phone rang. He picked up the phone, listened for a moment, and his face suddenly became serious.

"What's wrong?" Zhang Wanqing asked.

Fu Siyuan hung up the phone and said, "I just received an anonymous call saying that an employee who was fired by the company might be involved in this hacker attack."

"A fired employee?" Li Wei frowned. "Who was it?"

"His name is Wang Zuan, and he's a game designer for the company," Fu Siyuan said. "I heard he was fired because of a conflict with his boss."

"Wang Zuan?" Zhang Wanqing repeated the name. "That name sounds familiar."

"We need to investigate this Wang Zuan," Li Wei said. "Maybe he's the mastermind behind this hacker attack."