A Problem

Mr Williams ran hutdown the escalator and into the main office area. What was happening? All the computers were down. Everyone was trying to reboot but it was „impossible. Henry Williams tried not to panic. He asked Belinda to call Mike and tell him to come immediately. Then he said to his staff, " Don't worry, everyone. I'm sure it's a minor (незначительная) problem that Mike will soon resolve (решит). " A young bank teller whispered (кассир прошептал) to a colleague, " He said that last week when that virus destroyed most of our files. Remember? "

His friend smiled. Someone had sent an e-mail to all the staff which promised to show photos of Belinda's new boyfriend. Belinda was very popular with the staff in the bank so naturally everyone opened it. But there was no photo, just a virus which corrupted the entire system. Mike, who still didn't know about the problem, arrived in the lift just as strange things began to happen. First the lights went off, leaving the bank in darkness. Then a client came in to complain to a cashier that he couldn't access his account from the ATM outside the bank. Then the lights came on again but the doors closed automatically (автоматически), locking everyone in the bank. Mr Williams said sarcastically( саркастически ), " As you can see, Mike, our new system is working perfectly. Nobody can do any work, the clients are angry, and we are all prisoners in the bank! "

Mike smiled nervously. " I'm sure it's nothing. I'll take a look at the server and see what the problem is. " Mike was the only person with total security access rights for the system and he had the only copy of the password list. He was very good at his job so he wasn't too worried about these " hiccups. " He went to the main computer and put in his password. A message appeared on the screen:

Access Denied(доступ запрещён)

Password Invalid (пароль недействителен)

Everyone in the bank was watching him. Mike took his password list from his wallet. He typed in his password again, slowly and carefully. Every time he tried the same message appeared on the screen. " That's impossible, " he cried. His face was white with tension (напряжение). Mr Williams was waiting for an explanation. " Is everything OK? " he asked. Mike prepared (подготовил) to give his boss the bad news.

" It seems that... someone has obtained (получил) the passwords for the new system and... has changed them. "

" And what exactly does that mean? " asked his boss angrily. Mike took a deep breath.

" It means that this person now has total control of the bank. "

At that moment the doors of the bank miraculously opened again. No one spoke. The silence was broken only by the noise of the clock on the wall. All the staff were waiting for Mr Williams' reaction.

" And tell me, how did this person get the passwords? " asked Mr Williams quietly.

" I have no idea, " replied Mike. " I always keep the password list in my wallet. No one else has ever seen it. It's a complete mystery. "

" No! " shouted Mr Williams. " The mystery is why I gave you a job. First the virus and now this. Well, you can start looking for a new job. You're sacked (уволен)! "

Mike left the bank without a word. He didn't look at anyone. He knew that it was his fault. Belinda's voice broke the silence. " Oh, Mr Williams, what are we going to do? " Before he could answer, the computer displayed a new message:

E-mail arriving for Henry Williams

“Are You Ready to Play, Henry? ”

Mr Williams turned to the bank staff and said, " Please, continue to work as normal. There is nothing to worry about. "

Everyone looked surprised. How could they work without computers? It would be impossible. No one moved and no one spoke. Mr Williams repeated his message: " Back to work now, please. Our clients will arrive soon and we must be ready. " As his staff slowly began to return to work, the bank manager sat down in front of the server. Belinda stood next to him. Mr Williams looked at the screen. He was now extremely worried. He hesitated for a moment. Belinda thought he was in difficulty and she wanted to help. " You have to click on the e-mail icon in the comer of the screen, " she said. " I know, I know. I'm not completely stupid! " her boss shouted. Some members of staff looked at one another and smiled. Belinda knew Mr Williams well. She knew that when he was angry, as he was now, it was better to say nothing. She watched silently as he clicked on the icon. The mailbox appeared and revealed the subject of the new message:

Are you ready to play, Henry Williams?

Yes, he was ready. He had no idea who had sent the e-mail but he wanted an explanation and an end to this situation. He opened the message and the screen filled with words.

Hello Henry!

How are you today? happy? Or maybe worried? Or even angry! I haven't seen you for a long time but I can tell you that I am very, very annoyed with you. you are not my favorite person. how many enemies do you have? AT least one - me! I am going to make you pay for what you did to me before. As you know, I have entered your new and secure (ha! ha! ) computer system and guess what? It's MY system now. It was so easy to discover the passwords. You should be more careful, Henry. you don't mind if I call you Henry, do you?

Mr Williams was definitely angry now, and confused. He asked Belinda, " Who is this person? What does he want? Or maybe its a woman? Why is he (or she) angry? I'm an honest and respectable man and people like me - well, most people. Isn't that true, Belinda? " He turned to look at Belinda, hoping that she would give him the answer he wanted to hear, but she wasn't listening. She was reading the rest of the message as it appeared...

I have changed all the passwords so now I control everything in your bank. Be nice to me or I will lock the door again - or perhaps I'll do something much worse! But don't be afraid; I know that you're an intelligent (ha! ha! ) man, Henry, so I am going to give you a chance to save your precious bank. We are going to play a game. If you win, the bank will be saved. If you lose... the bank will be destroyed! Do you like my idea? I think it's great! It means that the fate of the bank, your bank, is in your own hands.

So, Henry, my friend... are you ready to play?

CHAPTER FOUR