Peter Beamish is recruited into the prestigious consultancy firm Lex Savart following a gruelling series of interviews. Shortly afterwards, major national infrastructure companies are hit by cyber-criminals, demanding vast ransoms in cryptocurrency.
Before he can help, Peter is let go from Lex Savart with no explanation or warning, and it is only then he starts to question what is really going on and whom he can trust. The cyber-criminals are leaving a trail of blood and destruction as they wipe out key witnesses, and Peter fears he may be next.
To save himself, he must get to the bottom of who caused the attacks and why.
A lot of questions were being asked, including how the cyber security measures had been so poor that the infrastructure could be penetrated so readily. They also undertook a level of analysis around the pros and cons of the companies paying the ‘terrorists’. Surely if the ransom money was paid it would encourage further attacks. But would the organisations recover anytime soon if they refused to pay?
“A wide range of hostile actors target the UK in cyberspace, including foreign states, criminals, ‘hacktivist’ groups and terrorists. In the last week, three of the UK critical national infrastructure providers have been targeted. We are working with our world-class security services to establish the perpetrators of these attacks. We will not be taking any questions at this time but will provide a further update when we can.”
The T1 monthly board meeting had been brought forward in light of the current events. In the boardroom of their Wood Street Headquarters building, Ernest Lockhead, CEO, was accompanied by Charles McTaggart, CFO, and Ian Bannister, CTO, and they also were expecting several additional heads of department to attend. A selection of newspapers – The Times, Financial Times and I – had been deposited on the boardroom table in advance.
Charles McTaggart clenched a copy of The Times and was pacing furiously up and down the boardroom. His face was crimson, and he looked like he was about to self-combust at any moment. He stopped and addressed the executive team but focused on their CTO in particular.
“What the hell have we done? We’ve outsourced our Crown Jewels, the IT estate, to a team in India. We preach to the world that we’re the leaders in technology, we’re here to support their technology, indeed take them to a higher level, yet we’ve lost touch with the technology that underpins our own business. And now it appears that the very team we’ve outsourced to could well be responsible for holding us to ransom.”
System Lockout is a crime thriller based around ransomware attacks on the core IT systems of large corporations providing critical national infrastructure. This is the nightmare that has already become reality for some large companies.
The backdrop for the action is a Big 4 management consultancy grappling with cyber attacks on their clients. As a former partner in a Big 4 consultancy, I felt the setting was described realistically and brought to life. This is not surprising, as the author has spent all of his career in IT, with a large part of it in a Big 4 consultancy, and this experience shows as he sets the scene and introduces the main characters in a world he clearly knows well.
The author avoids the traditional action hero cliché by telling much of the story through the eyes of a new recruit who has joined the consultancy as his first job after University. I really empathized with the hapless graduate trainee as he reacts to the developing situation with concern, then bewilderment, fear and finally outright horror.
The reader is led on a tense journey, wondering what will happen next with each twist of the plot. The detailed scene setting and character introductions at the start of the book are reminiscent of Ian Flemming’s style, but brought bang up to date with the IT consultancy, cyber crime and cryptocurrency replacing the old world of espionage.
Although a lot of the action takes place in the UK, there are also trips to multiple foreign locations which add further mystery to the plot . The tension grows ever higher as the story leads to a climax and a showdown with the cyber criminals. This is a gripping thriller with an intriguing approach on a topic which is currently headline news. It would make a cracking TV mini-series. I found it a very enjoyable read.
I enjoyed English Literature at school, working my way through the classic novels and plays for my O levels. But I was always far more absorbed in technical books than in Far from the Madding Crowd or Death of a Salesman. In the end, I followed that instinct and took a degree combining Computer Science and Electronics.
During my Big 4 consultancy career, I helped clients address major challenges arising from regulatory change and competitive pressure with a big IT focus. My client base was international and included Europe, the Caribbean, South Africa, the Middle East, Russia, and China.
During my extended stays in Jamaica, I spent weekends exploring an excellent second hand bookshop and reading under a mango tree by the pool. It was then that the idea of writing my own novel first occurred to me - an ambition I finally fulfilled more than twenty years later.
John Cheshire will be appearing at Lionsheart Bookshop & Café for book signings of his new novel - System Lockout. The bookshop also features a café that sells excellent home-made cakes.
Lionsheart Bookshop & Café
67 Commercial Way, Woking GU21 6HN
01483 765006
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