The simple things that trip us up
And the small things we can do to make a difference.
Remember that brouhaha over the ransomware unleashed on Indonesia’s Temporary National Data Centre (PDN)? The incident impacted 230 public agencies, including ministries, and took down government services such as immigration services.
It turned out that the incident happened not due to incredible hacking know-how or a state-sponsored cyberattack but stemmed from a weak password.
The password that disrupted a nation
As I wrote early in July, the outcome was severe and included days-long disruptions to multiple public services in Indonesia. At a press conference announcing the bad news, the government said the data centre was infected by LockBit 3.0, a sophisticated ransomware that experts say take just 5 minutes to encrypt over 100,000 files.
Thankfully, all data was eventually returned. Now for the plot twist: Despite an initial ransom demand of US$8 million, the bad guys walked away empty-handed – they voluntarily gave up the decryption key which allowed affected data to be successfully recovered. Read about it in “The improbable tale of how Indonesia got its ransomed data back” here.
So how did the worst-recorded hack in Indonesia come about? A document that was circulated claimed the password of the administrator account which the hackers breached was “Admin#1234”. This explanation makes sense, as the way the ransomware tore across the data centre across the servers of disparate parties suggested a compromise at the administrator level.
This incident got me thinking about how seemingly minor things can trip us up so badly.
Stepping out of the box
But just like how small things can cause us no end of headaches, genuine progress often happens in small steps, too. In Singapore, data centre operator STT GDC has announced that it is using renewable Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) fuel instead of diesel fuel for its backup power generators, starting with an initial deployment of 50,000 litres.
To be clear, the impact is limited as far as carbon reduction is concerned. As I wrote earlier this week, backup generators only kick in during an outage, and Singapore's power system is one of the most reliable in the world. So the chance of burning diesel isn't exactly high in the first place.
However, the real impact is in its vote of confidence in the HVO supply chain that will hopefully encourage other data centre operators or perhaps other industries to follow suit. And STT GDC did it even at the expense of the extensive testing inherent to adopting a non-standard solution.
When the best don't win
Of course, small steps only work if they are taken in the right direction. Otherwise, we’ll all be congratulating each other for running in circles. When it comes to technology, the unfortunate reality is that whoever makes the loudest noises often gets the most attention, regardless of its actual value or the impact of their contributions. And good solutions are frequently overlooked or even deliberately ignored.
A case could be made about the data centres industry right now, which is fixated on supporting generative AI. I certainly agree that there are no future data centre scenarios that don't have AI in the mix. But as we rush to build up hyperscale data centres to support GPUs and dedicated AI processing, we should not become fixated on a few niche approaches favoured by the tech giants at the expense of more holistic approaches.
Crucially, sustainability is left almost as an afterthought by some in favour of speed and making money now. We need to prioritise long-term environmental impact and efficiency as much as we do immediate gains.
Make a difference today
We know that the race is not to the swift or the battle to the strong. We don't need to be the best to make a meaningful impact, however. Whether in sustainability or in self-improvement, small steps in the right direction can accumulate into significant progress, ultimately shaping a better future.
In the meantime, we need to also address the "minor things" before they trip us up. This could be strengthening cybersecurity practices, performing regular training, or perhaps even personal habits that seem insignificant but can lead to meaningful improvements over time.
What are you working on today?
