I’m no expert, but holy crap the hacking on Homeland was bad

(credit: Showtime)

Admittedly, many of my colleagues at Ars—not to mention readers—have far more extensive knowledge of computer security than I do. But even I can recognize a ridiculous hacking scene when I see one.

And boy, Sunday night’s season opener of Homeland contained a doozy. If you’re not a Homeland fan, all you need to know for a basis is that this show is set within a fictional but modern-day CIA. (This particular season is set in Berlin.) Within the first four minutes of Season 5, Episode 1—before any recognizable characters show up on screen—two IT guys working for a Berlin-based porn site somehow manage to penetrate the CIA Berlin Station’s firewall and steal over 1,000 sensitive files. (Art imitating life, anyone?)

Here’s how Homeland depicts an epic CIA hack:

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