When the National Intelligence Agency finally broke the code and was able to read all those previously private online communications, the damage was much worse than they feared.
Three years earlier, Anonymous had released World Crypto Chat, an app that allowed anyone on earth to engage in truly private online conversations. With a built-in seamless translator and a unique 2048-bit encryption algorithm, the deed was done. And it became incredibly popular virtually overnight.
Intelligence agencies and governments everywhere were terrified. What would happen now with terrorists everywhere able to chat with complete security? Was the end of the world near?
Work on breaking the encryption began immediately, every government laboring furiously to get into those communications and get there first. The Americans, with their big black budget of nearly unlimited funds finally did it. But it took three years.
In the meantime, there were no big terrorist attacks anywhere. This generated suspicion that the terrorists were taking their time, putting together a special attack: the Big One. All the intelligence agencies could discern was the level of chatter. There was a lot of chatter, especially between people in Western countries and some very, very unfriendly enemy countries. China. Iran. Somalia. Palestinian regions and ISIL controlled territories.
Intelligence Director Charles Ridley read the report. His suspicions were right—the bulk of the conversations (and the most most significant) were taking place between Americans, our allies and enemy nations. That was bad enough. But the content of those conversations was even more shocking.
There were conversation groups, organized by interests. There were hundreds of them covering a variety of subjects: stamp collecting, soccer, parenting, diet, exercise, celebrities, games, and more. The latest version of the app had video, so all these people could see each other, look into each other’s eyes. They were getting to know each other.
Ridley wiped the sweat from his brow, but his breath became short. He was having a panic attack. The damage was done. He was too late.
Shiites and Sunnis were talking to each other directly, personally. And joined by Kurds and Christians from the Middle East and elsewhere. Koreans, both and North and South. Jewish Israelis and Palestinians. All kinds of people had broken into groups with common interests.
And worst of all, they liked each other. Now they opposed violence, subjugation and war. They would not fight their friends and now everybody was friends.
A tear slid down Ridley’s cheek and then, on a whim, he signed into a group discussing the ideal golf swing. Abdul had a few pointers.