Cyber Knights 1.0

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Shortly before its takedown by the FBI and other agencies, a small number of security researchers and law enforcement officials around the world had been noticing an unusual advert appearing intermittently in the services section of the Silk Road, the notorious criminal marketplace hidden deep within the Tor network. The advert was simple.

As it didn’t offer malware, credit card hash dumps, hard drugs, weapons, or child pornography, most researchers moved on to more tempting targets. Besides, it wasn’t a permanent feature, popping up a few days every month or two before once again disappearing. With other, more nefarious sorts to deal with, no one charged with policing the Internet who bothered to read it when it did crop up considered the character they dubbed “Sealion” to be much of a threat.

Despite being one of the smaller departments of state, everyone who worked in the unimposing building at the far end of Whitehall knew that the current minister was rather proud of his position. Therefore, violating any of the myriad of rules with which he ran his office was something none of his staff dared to do unless they were prepared to deal with the ire of his ever-vigilant gatekeeper, Terri Campbell, or the unbridled wrath of Edward Telford, the minister’s permanent undersecretary and attack dog. This was why the minister was quite taken aback when Bryan Morton, his director of communications and perhaps the most risk-averse member of his staff, paid no heed whatsoever to Terri Campbell’s effort to stop Morton as he rushed past her desk and burst into the minister’s office without so much as knocking.

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