Chapter 335 It Is Entirely Possible
As noon approached, Nathaniel intended to take Lucas to a nearby restaurant for lunch.
Just as they were about to leave, Sebastian rushed in, a rare look of urgency etched on his usually composed face. “Mr. Hadley, we have a problem. Someone is attacking our security system, and all of our computers have frozen, he reported.
“What did the technical department say?” Nathaniel immediately rose from his seat.
If their clients’ information and business arrangements were to leak out, it would spell disaster for the
company.
Sebastian’s face paled. “The technical department can only resist the attack for now, but they won’t be able to hold off for long.”
Four years ago, when the company’s data had been leaked, Nathaniel had taken measures to strengthen the company’s cybersecurity. Hence, Nathaniel couldn’t fathom how the hacker could have breached their enhanced system.
A cold glint appeared in his eyes. “What use is the technical department if they can’t even stop a hacker?”
He made his way toward the elevator, only to notice that Lucas was following him.
“I want to go check it out too,” Lucas said innocently.
Sebastian was rendered speechless. We’re going to work not to play house. Perhaps Mr. Hadley is only letting him tag along simply because he doesn’t want to leave the child alone in his office.
The technical department had descended into chaos. Several technicians were frantically working to fend off the intrusive malware, but even the three of them couldn’t hold off the single hacker’s attack.
Suddenly, they received an email from the attacker demanding thirty million in exchange for ceasing the a*sault. Otherwise, they threatened to make all of Hadley Corporation’s data public.
A data leak of such scale would be akin to stripping Hadley Corporation naked and throwing it into the street. It would be a devastating blow for any company.
Clearly, the hacker was after money.
Nathaniel walked in and his stern expression intensified as he took in the sight of his staff struggling helplessly against the invasion.
“Mr. Hadley, should we pay? If the hacker leaks the company’s information, the repercussions are going to be… dire, the director of the technical department suggested in a small voice.
Thirty million in exchange for their data’s security seemed like a good deal.
Nathaniel furrowed his brows, anger simmering beneath his cool façade.
Agreeing to the hacker’s blackmail would only encourage them to strike again to demand more money from Hadley Corporation in the future.
Nathaniel would never agree to it.
“Find the best programmers no matter the cost. We must get them here,” Nathaniel said.
The programmers in the department were experienced seniors with annual salaries of over five million. If even they couldn’t handle this issue, it was hard to imagine who else could do so.
All they could do was lower their heads in shame.
“Isn’t it just a Trojan horse? You guys are acting like it’s the end of the world.” A childish voice broke the tense silence in the department.
The programmers turned to find a small figure standing beside them. He was only slightly taller than the chair beside him.
The boy bore an uncanny resemblance to Nathaniel. They couldn’t help but wonder if he was their boss”
son.
“Boy, don’t talk nonsense when you don’t know anything,” one programmer responded. They had never seen a Trojan horse malware this vicious. Even their director was at a loss.
Lucas pushed the programmer from his chair disdainfully and pouted. “You’ll see if I’m talking nonsense,” he retorted.
“Mr. Lucas…” Sebastian’s voice quivered with anxiety as he reached out to take the boy off the chair. However, he was stopped by Nathaniel’s firm grip.
The next sequence of events had everyone at a loss for words.
In a state of disbelief, they observed the little boy’s tender, rosy hands dancing across the keyboard wi astounding speed. His nimbleness was such that his keystrokes remained invisible, with only the resounding clacks of the keys echoing in the room.
As he worked, it was shown on the computer screen that over eighty percent of the malware had been removed.
Within the span of half an hour, the hacker’s malware had been removed completely, and the company’s computers all resumed normal operations.
The director of the technical department gasped in shock as though his mind had just survived a storm.
A problem that had stumped more than a dozen of their finest programmers had just been solved by a child.
The realization filled them with mortification.
“Problem solved. Your firewall is far from impressive. Otherwise, the hacker wouldnt have been able to hack into your system so easily,” Lucas remarked casually. He hopped down from the chair, clapping his hands merrily.
Nathaniel didn’t know that Lucas was proficient with computers.
Christina had never mentioned it..
Sebastian scooped Lucas into his arms excitedly. “Mr. Lucas, you’ve been hiding your talents so well!”
The programmers flocked around, their eyes gleaming with admiration. “Mr. Lucas, how did you do that? Could you teach us?”
Acquiring even a fraction of such impressive skill would be a fortune.
Lucas blushed at the compliments. A small smirk on his face revealed his pearly white teeth as he said, “It’s nothing impressive, really.”
“Mr. Lucas, when will you be able to guide us in our work?” a few programmers asked, regarding the little boy as if he were a national treasure. They were eager to get closer to him.
“I’ll come over during my weekend off.” Lucas promptly agreed.
He had only readily agreed to the request as he thought his father’s company’s cybersecurity was lacking. and there were many vulnerabilities that he wanted to fix.
The trio returned to Nathaniel’s office soon after.
Madison was tidying up documents on a desk. She saw Nathaniel holding a little boy in his arms, and she instantly recognized the boy to be Lucas.
I’ve intentionally shown the boy to Christina the day before. Isn’t she supposed to be angry? Why would she let the boy follow Nathaniel?
Madison had been confident that her actions yesterday had struck Christina’s pride, but she was now puzzled as to why her plan was not working.
Sebastian poured a gla*s of juice for Lucas as he attempted to curry favor with the little boy. “Mr. Lucas, your programming skills are really incredible. Could you possibly help me recover some data?”
Lucas took over the gla*s of juice and took a sip before answering. “Sure!”
“That’s fantastic! Four years ago, someone breached our internal system, stole data on a project, and published it online. The intruder erased all traces of the breach, and to this day we still can’t find the culprit,” Sebastian said.
As he recounted the incident, he gritted his teeth furiously.
They had no choice but to fast-track the project to minimize the company’s losses. Those few months had them working so hard that it had caused a significant toll on their health.
The most frustrating part was their inability to identify the perpetrator.
“How can you possibly find anything after four years?” Madison asked.
Lucas’ eyes fell upon the woman, and his first impression was anything but favorable. However, he had heard from his mother that this woman was his father’s a*sistant.
Why would Daddy employ such a morally questionable character?
Lucas had noticed the way Madison looked at Nathaniel. It was akin to a cat hungrily eyeing a fish. It was obvious that her gaze was filled with ill intent.
“Others may not be able to do it, but I a*sure you, in my hands, it is entirely possible,” Lucas countered her dismissive comment with a huff.
