Shadows in the Ether

Shadows in the Ether is a cautionary tale of how technology can be exploited to do harm. It explores the problem of hacking and social media exploitation told through those that have been affected. The Chinese have infested the Internet with the aim of disrupting the West. This is first discovered by uncovering the exploitation by criminal gangs who have coat tailed on the back of the sabotage. Whether this is with the support of the Chinese government is not clear. Perhaps they have...
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Shadows in the Ether is a cautionary tale of how technology can be exploited to do harm. It explores the problem of hacking and social media exploitation told through those that have been affected. The Chinese have infested the Internet with the aim of disrupting the West. This is first discovered by uncovering the exploitation by criminal gangs who have coat tailed on the back of the sabotage. Whether this is with the support of the Chinese government is not clear. Perhaps they have let loose a demon they cannot control.As part of a gambling scheme Chinese gangs are exploiting the Internet to persuade young girls to take their lives. Odds are placed on how and when they do this. The girls believe they are taking part in an extensive suicide pact with sympathetic soul mates and are persuaded to show their act live believing others would do the same. The biggest selling security software run on hundred of millions of computers and phones has been hacked. This enables the gang to spoof social media conversations and befriend its victims. In the US the vendor of the product is sent into panic and moves to try to recover their damaged position.The story opens at the funeral of one young girl Helen Fleet. She has committed suicide believing her action to be part of a sympathetic pact. It then develops around her father who tries to track down the gang believed to have groomed her and gets entangled in a world that is alien to him. He becomes involved with a special unit that has been set up to attack the problem. Government support for the specialist unit fades as they fail to make progress leaving the father frustrated. But all is not lost. Rogue technicians from the UK and US enlisted to help the struggling police and security services come up with a solution to stop the activities of the gang. But it brings its own problems as it severely impacts the Internet. The effects are profound and widespread as World trade is hampered. Criminal activity is just the tip of the iceberg. The Chinese government is behind the hacking of the Internet. In effect the criminals gangs are testing the technology for them. The Chinese government mounts covert activities to try to stop the West wrecking its plans. It becomes a political battle between good and evil. The West succeeds but have they only won a a battle not the war? Ws the first battle simply a test to see how clever the West is?At key points the gang behind the scheme are explored to reveal the callous nature of their behaviour. There are real people behind the crime and amongst their midst there are also victims being exploited. There is an interplay between the good who are trying to stop the criminal activities and the evil. Eventually the mechanism the gang uses is destroyed and they are put out of business....or are they? Crime and criminal organisations will always find a way. Its in their blood. They will move on and find new ways to commit crime. The Internet provides a platform that allows rapid change. At this point the very nature of the Internet is questioned. If it can allow so much evil to thrive do its benefits outweigh its evil side? Why must progress allow evil to thrive? The dangers of social media are woven into the storyline and explored at a personal level.Of necessity the story contains some technology but it is explained in simple terms and only used where it enhances the story. Ether is a reference to ancient science that believed that sound was transmitted by an invisible ether in the air. Shadow is a reference to the underworld. In the 21st century the shadow of the underworld plays in the new ether that is the Internet.