Filed under: Computers
Chances are you’ve seen some documentary or movie about nuclear war in which missile silos were represented as being kept in impregnable, well-guarded bunkers. Said fictional silos were also protected by secret codes that were frequently refreshed and (we all hope) never needed in the case of a nuclear attack.
Well, as it turns out, that’s not so much the case in real life, as the Air Force this week announced that a nuclear silo was found to be staffed only by sleeping guards, who would have been incapable of stopping, or even noticing, someone sneaking in and stealing the launch codes.
Thankfully, though (depending on how you look at it) there was no threat to begin with. As it turns out, the launch codes the dozing crew had were out-dated, meaning if the crew had attempted to launch their missile, they wouldn’t have been successful in the first place.
As always, two wrongs don’t make a right, but sometimes they’re better than just one. [Source: AP, via The Inquirer]
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