My Calling Is Profiler [EN]: Chapter 474

“We can’t know what’s been deleted.”

“Is it easy to erase log records?”

“It’s not easy. But there are at least 140 people here who could do it.”

“Really?”

“Do you think research these days is like the old days, where they just blow things up and see what happens?”

In modern warfare, software is far more crucial than new artillery shells. Naturally, experts are heavily involved in creating that software.

And each of them is considered a genius by outsiders.

“In the first place, it’s standard to run simulations on a computer before conducting actual field tests.”

Each experiment costs tens or even hundreds of millions of won [South Korean currency], so they can’t afford to test every time. The solution is virtual experiments using computers.

Of course, there’s no guarantee of success, but at least they can identify potential failure scenarios, making simulations a common practice before actual testing.

“Naturally, there are many computer experts as well.”

The number 140 is a conservative estimate. It refers to people with the skills to penetrate the server.

Lee Sung-moon explained that if someone is more skilled or uses programs created externally, the number would more than double.

“By external, you mean China?”

“That’s right.”

“Then, in the worst case, that program might still be on the server.”

“That’s right.”

“Hmm, is the server security that weak?”

“It’s not that it’s weak… Ha, how many times have I said this? It’s more accurate to say they haven’t updated it.”

“What do you mean?”

“You could say the level is different. Ah, of course, it’s not that the security here is weak, but ultimately, it was created by an outside contractor.”

Of course, it’s a system they brought in from a company that provides relatively expensive security. But the people who work here have even greater skills.

The average annual salary here is 240 million won. In contrast, other security companies pay around 100 million won at most. Assuming that people receive more money for better skills, there are plenty of people here who can break through the systems created by external security companies.

“But then again, from a company’s perspective… well, they can’t exactly tell their expensive workforce to create security systems.”

“I understand what you mean.”

In fact, South Korea’s security system is among the weakest in the world. In particular, the South Korean banking system has been breached dozens of times, but they haven’t fixed it.

South Korea is particularly reluctant to spend money on computer security.

“But still, there must be people inside who are operating the security? According to President Hong Geun-jong, the Chinese are breaking in several times a day.”

“That’s true. But those guys don’t know the basic source code we use here, and they have no way to access the internal programs.”

However, the people who work here can access it anytime, anywhere, and through that access, they can delete all access records.

“So, internal defenses are completely ineffective.”

“I’ve said it several times to the higher-ups, but they don’t listen.”

“I can understand that.”

Of course, they’ll have basic defenses, but there’s a limit to that. Moreover, since the people accessing the system are in the top 0.01% of talent in South Korea, to improve internal security, they would need to bring in people who are similar to or on par with them.

“Then it would cost a fortune.”

“That’s what I’m saying.”

As a result, they focus on external defenses but neglect internal defenses. Furthermore, the biggest problem with internal defenses is that the people using the system are constantly reviewing it, so it’s bound to be breached over time.

Because they naturally come to understand the system as they use it.

“In conclusion, it’s impossible to access records through computers or CCTV.”

Not only the National Intelligence Service [South Korean Intelligence Agency] but also the Ministry of National Defense has tried such investigations, but they ultimately failed to recover anything.

“The CCTV was also erased?”

“Yes.”

“Usually, CCTV operates as a completely separate system, doesn’t it?”

“That’s right. But this guy used his head.”

Knowing that turning it off would alert the security team, he manipulated the video to overwrite it with footage from a month ago.

It appears as a complex trick in movies, but it was a surprisingly simple trick, and since he was an insider, he easily accessed and modified the system.

“The security room didn’t notice at all because it was footage from a month ago.”

“So, there was no one who showed any unusual behavior that day?”

“Not at all. The overwrite wasn’t just for one day; it was for an entire month.”

Because of that, they can’t accurately identify who the culprit is.

“I see.”

Park Do-joon frowned at those words.

“It seems like they’ve been preparing for a very long time.”

Park Do-joon said, stroking his chin. Then he chuckled.

“First, can you gather all the employees?”

“Gather them?”

“Yes, whether it’s an auditorium, a lecture hall, or even a morning assembly, isn’t there a place where you can gather?”

“We have places.”

“Then please gather them. I’m going to do a profiling of the culprit.”

At those words, Yoo In-hye was horrified.

“Are you crazy?”

“No, I’m not crazy.”

“But you’re going to do profiling? And you’re going to announce it?”

Logically, this kind of action should be done discreetly. Yoo In-hye couldn’t understand Park Do-joon’s words at all, but Park Do-joon chuckled at Yoo In-hye’s words.

“Agent Yoo, what’s the point of secrecy in this situation?”

“What do you mean?”

“Are there any researchers who don’t know about this incident? And is there anyone who doesn’t take this incident seriously?”

“That’s…!”

“Of course, it’s true that it hasn’t been disclosed to the outside due to security issues. But there’s no one among the employees of the Daeguk Research Institute who doesn’t know.”

Of course. The National Intelligence Service, the police, and even the Ministry of National Defense have been searching every nook and cranny, causing a commotion each time.

“But in this situation, what’s the point of us maintaining security?”

“That’s….”

Yoo In-hye couldn’t say anything to that.

‘Habits sometimes create limitations.’

Park Do-joon clicked his tongue while looking at Yoo In-hye. The National Intelligence Service and the Ministry of National Defense are very obsessed with security due to the nature of their organizations.

Of course, that’s not a bad thing. In fact, there’s no organization that benefits from lowering security.

‘But sometimes, being pathologically obsessed with security becomes a weakness.’

A public investigation is one of the most effective means of pressure to track down criminals. But the National Intelligence Service and the Ministry of National Defense unknowingly insist on security, so they extremely dislike public investigations.

Naturally, the tracking of criminals is not done properly, so it takes a long time to make arrests. In fact, the time it takes to catch spies or agents is at least six months, and sometimes even years.

‘I felt it in the past, but the National Intelligence Service is too concerned with security.’

Of course, there are some guys who need to be caught with security. For example, in the case of a spy ring, security is very important. This is because the possibility of escape is very high, and in the worst case, if the spy escapes to his home country, that is, North Korea, China, or Japan, arrest becomes impossible.

‘But industrial spies are a bit different.’

The key to industrial spies is the ability to extract information. And strictly speaking, they are expendable.

You can entice them with money from enemy countries to extract technology, but those countries don’t want them to immigrate or escape to those countries. Because that would be tantamount to admitting that they are a country that engages in espionage.

So, in the case of political spies, they are protected by their home country if they escape to their home country, but in the case of these industrial spies, they do not provide protection even if they escape.

Rather, dictatorial countries such as China and North Korea sometimes kill them to cut off the tail when they come in.

“Don’t worry, industrial spies won’t be able to escape.”

“But we have to catch who’s behind them!”

“China is behind them, right? Are you going to protest to China?”

Park Do-joon said with a snort.

‘It’s not a one- or two-year problem that the Korean government is groveling to China.’

In fact, even though a guy who was trying to defect to China had the blueprints for a new type of firearm, neither Korea nor the Daeguk Group could protest to China.

“Frankly speaking, we can’t even protest to China, so what’s the point of digging into who’s behind it? No, don’t we already know who’s behind it?”

If a Chinese spy takes Korean military data and crosses over to China, would the mastermind be the United States? Of course, it would be China.

“And the National Intelligence Service isn’t stupid enough not to know that it’s impossible to track, right?”

These spy organizations are thoroughly organized in a point-to-point manner. Naturally, the guys who contacted them would have already fled to China when their organization members were arrested, and even if we somehow arrest the culprit here, it would be impossible to arrest the related guys because the related people have already disappeared.

“Isn’t that right?”

“……”

Yoo In-hye couldn’t say anything to that. Because Park Do-joon’s words were correct. Industrial spies are just expendable.

They just give money and cut them off if problems arise afterward.

“Then what’s the point of security?”

Since the line to go up has already been cut off, maintaining secrecy in the name of security will only give those guys time to escape or destroy evidence.

“Then what are we supposed to do? Are we going to tell them to confess?”

“They won’t confess. But the body is honest.”

Yoo In-hye felt a surge of annoyance at that unpleasant remark, but there was nothing she could say.

“Hello, everyone.”

Most of the people working at the research institute gathered in the auditorium. Except for a very few people, that is, departments where at least one or two people must be present, everyone gathered and sat on the chairs in the auditorium with annoyed expressions.

“Let’s get this over with quickly.”

“I’m so annoyed.”

The researchers, who had been suffering for a while, gathered with complaints. If there was no work, it would be one thing, but they were so busy that the days they went home were fewer than the days they slept here, so it was tiring to fight with the National Intelligence Service, who were treating them like criminals.

“Hello. I’m Detective Park Do-joon.”

Park Do-joon said, looking around.

‘It’s as expected.’

Everyone is not interested in Park Do-joon. They’ll think he’s going to say the same old story again.

‘But it’s not the same this time.’

Park Do-joon smiled bitterly inside and threw a bomb at them.

“Everyone knows about the incident that happened recently.”

“Why are they bothering us when they can’t even solve it themselves?”

“I know, right? They’re so incompetent….”

Naturally, no good words come out in this situation. And Park Do-joon knows that. That’s why he was going to use it.