Recovered Briefings on Project Lockdown (M/MM)
Posted: Sat May 23, 2020 2:15 pm
Outlined below are briefing notes of the now-dissolved country of Grubortza. While the country struggled with many issues in its final days, they were overwhelmed by our superior technology on multiple fronts before the invasion, one project is chronicled below. Additional annotations by Dr. Liam Ufford, father of the device all subjects of our colonies must wear. Let his words be a reminder to those who would cross the great Skish nation.
[May 8, 2018]: Project Lockdown secured funding from Home Office. Purpose is to equip devices capable of monitoring movement, listening to conversations, and alter behavior. Intelligence Division will begin drafting a list of potential foreign dignitaries. Design Division will begin converting initial blueprints into wearable prototypes.
[May 22, 2018]: Intelligence Division identified 501 potential targets, in the process of filtering those further by the following criteria: 1) net worth of gained intelligence after effort to equip device; 2) ease of equipping device; 3) fallout from public discovery for either country. Design Division working to circumvent the following obstacle: how to prevent removal by user.
"Obviously the solution is partly on an improved design and partly on an educated user. Even if there aren't actually any explosives in the device, the target doesn't have to know that."
[June 5, 2018]: Home Office approved two targets may be used for Project Lockdown, and redirects focus to those working within embassies, not specifically dignitaries. Further targets may be utilized after successful trial runs. Intelligence Division highlighted five high-return profiles, and Home Office will deliberate their options. Design Division working to circumvent the following obstacle: device is noticeable under business casual and business formal attire.
"Those idiots can't read. My notes clearly indicate that the tube is pointed downward, not upward."
[June 19, 2018]: approved targets are "Arnold Heitzman", an intern at the Skish Embassy and "Julio Santiago", passport clerk at the Poblari Embassy. Both individuals will be intercepted outside their embassy, equipped with Project Lockdown devices, and given directions not to 1) remove device for fear of explosion, 2) tell others of device either directly or indirectly, 3) change day-to-day behavior. Design Division has four completed prototypes.
[July 3, 2018]: Home Office cancels Project Lockdown due to unresolved concerns including: breach of international law in conscripting foreign operatives; complications in maintaining secrecy; microphones not picking up clear audio through business casual or business formal pants. Intelligence Division dissolves after redacting sensitive information. Design Division dissolves after destroying three prototypes; the fourth is not accounted for despite repeated internal investigations.
"Months of my life wasted because of the bureaucrats at Home Office. I'll teach them. I just need time and resources, and I know just where to go."
[January 14, 2020]: Intelligence memo forwarded to Home Office titled: "Derivative of missing prototype of Project Lockdown found online for sale on Skish website". Marketed as a chastity cage with remote locking features, including a social app where users can share their locked status, connect with others to trade control of locks, and play games to increase or decrease time locked. Home Office sent a notice to internal leaders to not equip this device under any circumstances due to security concerns.
"Yes, yes. If you post it online, people will buy it. They'll will make and share reviews about it. You'll mostly catch low-to-no-sensitivity individuals, but I assure you that eventually someone higher up is going to think with the wrong head and lock themselves. Then you'll have them by the balls, literally. Spy on them, blackmail them, do to them what they were planning to do to you."
[January 28, 2020]: Travel for Dr. Liam Ufford, a team lead on Project Lockdown, indicates he has not returned from Skish for two years. Not seen publicly since. Presumed defected. Presumed as the source of the missing prototype and now-trending derivative product. Home Office purchased several devices and determined there are spyware components including: microphone, GPS-tracking, Bluetooth connectivity. No known internal leaders using device. Suspected count of domestic civilians purchased the device around 500-1,000, concentrated in major cities. Home Office initiated a task force for response, designated as Prison Riot..
[February 11, 2020]: Hiring for the Prison Riot put on hold. Major resources devoted to responding to COVID-19. Prison Riot requested major homeland technology companies not allow derivative prototype to be discoverable on their websites, for security reasons. Online sales of derivative prototype continue. No known internal leaders using device.
"So shift focus: target the masses instead of the heads. I'm just a designer. You're the ones pushing the product."
[February 25, 2020]: Prison Riot forwarded report to Home Office titled: "Known features of spyware product". It details the use of the derivative prototype by two junior technicians on the task force. Users claimed the first week locked they had trouble sleeping but have since adjusted. The devices are comfortable and snug. Users who retain control over their own devices may set a timer of up to 359 days, during which the device will remain locked. The companion app shows time remaining locked. Users may play tile-matching games within the app to spin a victory wheel, with prizes to reduce or add locked minutes. Users who transfer control to others allow the new controller to 1) unlock the device, 2) set a new timer, 3) vibrate and/or warm the device, 4) transfer control back to the original owner, 5) pass control to a new owner. The junior technicians will continue to test the devices, transferring control to their supervisors and each other.
[March 10, 2020]: Surge in purchases and online reviews for product. Individuals and online retailers are promoting the device with discount codes. Being on country-wide lockdown has also been a driving factor in sales across domestic civilians. Suspected count of domestic civilians using the device around 3,000-4,000. Technology companies cite their own privacy rights to not interfere with their online traffic. Prison Riot drafted outreach letter to intelligence leads in other countries on known and unknown security risks of derivative prototype, but Home Office discouraged such outreach due to concerns of ultimate liability.
[March 24, 2020]: Junior technicians part of Prison Riot have reported trouble connecting to their devices. App support has been lagging. Prison Riot petitioned Home Office whether they could set up secure email and contact information for reaching out to the app support team. Benefits would include: 1) gaining intelligence on foreign spyware and 2) unlocking the junior technicians after two months locked. Risks would include: 1) exposing Prison Riot task force initiative.
[April 7, 2020]: Home Office denies request to contact foreign app support team due to security concerns. Junior technicians are put on monitored lockdown to prevent them from reaching out through their own personal communication. Prison Riot task force is dissolved.
"I understand your frustration that they did not take your bait, and that the task force tether is cut. But this is an opportunity to cast a wider net...Yes, I still have full confidence in my design...I mean, of course I'm not going to wear it...Stay back, stay back!"
[May 19, 2020]: Social media posts report connectivity issues for large amounts of users. Users are unable to unlock and remove devices even if they retained control. Social media profile for derivative prototype issues public notice they work to resolve connectivity issues.
[June 2, 2020]: Report that the Representative of Linrawa has been locked for a month and unable to unlock his device. He has received a ransom from an unknown email claiming to release his locked status and app usage history unless he pays a large sum. Email is forwarded to Home Office for handling of the sensitive situation. Decision is to move the representative out from the public eye until the device can be safely removed.
[June 16, 2020]: Two more reports of public officials are directed to Home Office, each with notices to pay large sums or be outed as a user of the device. Users are still not able to unlock, posting online that their devices will randomly vibrate sometimes for long periods. Some users have sought medical attention for help in removing, but x-rays of the devices show it is not safe to remove due to unknown components inside the devices.
[June 30, 2020]: News outlets report on multitudes of people locked in these devices with no safe way of release, prompting questions of whether Home Office should step in or if that violates personal privacy rights of citizens. Home Office does not issue response. Users share personal stories of long-term effects of being locked, including reduced stress and increased pleasure. Other users post how they were able to get unlocked by transferring ownership to user "Big S". Home Office discovered these posts came from unverified users, and that transferring to Big S left the users with a device that beeped every minute. These users could no longer remain discrete.
[July 14, 2020]: Public unrest grows over Home Office's non-response. Locked users show increased usage home-delivery apps. Users continue to play in-app tile-matching game, noting they are required to play at least once a day or their device will beep constantly starting at 6AM. Users also note they are now discoverable using the in-app map. Some users are arrested for burglaries, thefts, and kidnappings, each claiming they were blackmailed to doing so by Big S. Home Office creates task force, Secure Front, for identifying domestic users.
[July 28, 2020]: Secure Front uses in-app map to locate domestic users. Users are transported to secondary location and detained to limit risk of further violence under duress. News outlets report on detention of users, some arguing against due to personal freedom rights and some arguing for due to safety of others.
[May 8, 2018]: Project Lockdown secured funding from Home Office. Purpose is to equip devices capable of monitoring movement, listening to conversations, and alter behavior. Intelligence Division will begin drafting a list of potential foreign dignitaries. Design Division will begin converting initial blueprints into wearable prototypes.
[May 22, 2018]: Intelligence Division identified 501 potential targets, in the process of filtering those further by the following criteria: 1) net worth of gained intelligence after effort to equip device; 2) ease of equipping device; 3) fallout from public discovery for either country. Design Division working to circumvent the following obstacle: how to prevent removal by user.
"Obviously the solution is partly on an improved design and partly on an educated user. Even if there aren't actually any explosives in the device, the target doesn't have to know that."
[June 5, 2018]: Home Office approved two targets may be used for Project Lockdown, and redirects focus to those working within embassies, not specifically dignitaries. Further targets may be utilized after successful trial runs. Intelligence Division highlighted five high-return profiles, and Home Office will deliberate their options. Design Division working to circumvent the following obstacle: device is noticeable under business casual and business formal attire.
"Those idiots can't read. My notes clearly indicate that the tube is pointed downward, not upward."
[June 19, 2018]: approved targets are "Arnold Heitzman", an intern at the Skish Embassy and "Julio Santiago", passport clerk at the Poblari Embassy. Both individuals will be intercepted outside their embassy, equipped with Project Lockdown devices, and given directions not to 1) remove device for fear of explosion, 2) tell others of device either directly or indirectly, 3) change day-to-day behavior. Design Division has four completed prototypes.
[July 3, 2018]: Home Office cancels Project Lockdown due to unresolved concerns including: breach of international law in conscripting foreign operatives; complications in maintaining secrecy; microphones not picking up clear audio through business casual or business formal pants. Intelligence Division dissolves after redacting sensitive information. Design Division dissolves after destroying three prototypes; the fourth is not accounted for despite repeated internal investigations.
"Months of my life wasted because of the bureaucrats at Home Office. I'll teach them. I just need time and resources, and I know just where to go."
[January 14, 2020]: Intelligence memo forwarded to Home Office titled: "Derivative of missing prototype of Project Lockdown found online for sale on Skish website". Marketed as a chastity cage with remote locking features, including a social app where users can share their locked status, connect with others to trade control of locks, and play games to increase or decrease time locked. Home Office sent a notice to internal leaders to not equip this device under any circumstances due to security concerns.
"Yes, yes. If you post it online, people will buy it. They'll will make and share reviews about it. You'll mostly catch low-to-no-sensitivity individuals, but I assure you that eventually someone higher up is going to think with the wrong head and lock themselves. Then you'll have them by the balls, literally. Spy on them, blackmail them, do to them what they were planning to do to you."
[January 28, 2020]: Travel for Dr. Liam Ufford, a team lead on Project Lockdown, indicates he has not returned from Skish for two years. Not seen publicly since. Presumed defected. Presumed as the source of the missing prototype and now-trending derivative product. Home Office purchased several devices and determined there are spyware components including: microphone, GPS-tracking, Bluetooth connectivity. No known internal leaders using device. Suspected count of domestic civilians purchased the device around 500-1,000, concentrated in major cities. Home Office initiated a task force for response, designated as Prison Riot..
[February 11, 2020]: Hiring for the Prison Riot put on hold. Major resources devoted to responding to COVID-19. Prison Riot requested major homeland technology companies not allow derivative prototype to be discoverable on their websites, for security reasons. Online sales of derivative prototype continue. No known internal leaders using device.
"So shift focus: target the masses instead of the heads. I'm just a designer. You're the ones pushing the product."
[February 25, 2020]: Prison Riot forwarded report to Home Office titled: "Known features of spyware product". It details the use of the derivative prototype by two junior technicians on the task force. Users claimed the first week locked they had trouble sleeping but have since adjusted. The devices are comfortable and snug. Users who retain control over their own devices may set a timer of up to 359 days, during which the device will remain locked. The companion app shows time remaining locked. Users may play tile-matching games within the app to spin a victory wheel, with prizes to reduce or add locked minutes. Users who transfer control to others allow the new controller to 1) unlock the device, 2) set a new timer, 3) vibrate and/or warm the device, 4) transfer control back to the original owner, 5) pass control to a new owner. The junior technicians will continue to test the devices, transferring control to their supervisors and each other.
[March 10, 2020]: Surge in purchases and online reviews for product. Individuals and online retailers are promoting the device with discount codes. Being on country-wide lockdown has also been a driving factor in sales across domestic civilians. Suspected count of domestic civilians using the device around 3,000-4,000. Technology companies cite their own privacy rights to not interfere with their online traffic. Prison Riot drafted outreach letter to intelligence leads in other countries on known and unknown security risks of derivative prototype, but Home Office discouraged such outreach due to concerns of ultimate liability.
[March 24, 2020]: Junior technicians part of Prison Riot have reported trouble connecting to their devices. App support has been lagging. Prison Riot petitioned Home Office whether they could set up secure email and contact information for reaching out to the app support team. Benefits would include: 1) gaining intelligence on foreign spyware and 2) unlocking the junior technicians after two months locked. Risks would include: 1) exposing Prison Riot task force initiative.
[April 7, 2020]: Home Office denies request to contact foreign app support team due to security concerns. Junior technicians are put on monitored lockdown to prevent them from reaching out through their own personal communication. Prison Riot task force is dissolved.
"I understand your frustration that they did not take your bait, and that the task force tether is cut. But this is an opportunity to cast a wider net...Yes, I still have full confidence in my design...I mean, of course I'm not going to wear it...Stay back, stay back!"
[May 19, 2020]: Social media posts report connectivity issues for large amounts of users. Users are unable to unlock and remove devices even if they retained control. Social media profile for derivative prototype issues public notice they work to resolve connectivity issues.
[June 2, 2020]: Report that the Representative of Linrawa has been locked for a month and unable to unlock his device. He has received a ransom from an unknown email claiming to release his locked status and app usage history unless he pays a large sum. Email is forwarded to Home Office for handling of the sensitive situation. Decision is to move the representative out from the public eye until the device can be safely removed.
[June 16, 2020]: Two more reports of public officials are directed to Home Office, each with notices to pay large sums or be outed as a user of the device. Users are still not able to unlock, posting online that their devices will randomly vibrate sometimes for long periods. Some users have sought medical attention for help in removing, but x-rays of the devices show it is not safe to remove due to unknown components inside the devices.
[June 30, 2020]: News outlets report on multitudes of people locked in these devices with no safe way of release, prompting questions of whether Home Office should step in or if that violates personal privacy rights of citizens. Home Office does not issue response. Users share personal stories of long-term effects of being locked, including reduced stress and increased pleasure. Other users post how they were able to get unlocked by transferring ownership to user "Big S". Home Office discovered these posts came from unverified users, and that transferring to Big S left the users with a device that beeped every minute. These users could no longer remain discrete.
[July 14, 2020]: Public unrest grows over Home Office's non-response. Locked users show increased usage home-delivery apps. Users continue to play in-app tile-matching game, noting they are required to play at least once a day or their device will beep constantly starting at 6AM. Users also note they are now discoverable using the in-app map. Some users are arrested for burglaries, thefts, and kidnappings, each claiming they were blackmailed to doing so by Big S. Home Office creates task force, Secure Front, for identifying domestic users.
[July 28, 2020]: Secure Front uses in-app map to locate domestic users. Users are transported to secondary location and detained to limit risk of further violence under duress. News outlets report on detention of users, some arguing against due to personal freedom rights and some arguing for due to safety of others.