SIEMENS

The mountain has a huge underground facility inside it, Magnus." Ole is surprised when, after several laborious attempts with his thick gloves, he finally succeeds in unrolling an e-paper display with a cross-sectional view of a gigantic laboratory. He holds it up against the mountain range. An IT security expert, Ole knew, of course, that his native Svalbard is described as the "largest laboratory in the world" for arctic research. But he had no idea there was such a large research station here. "Impressive, isn’t it?" replies his brother, biologist Magnus Caspersen. "Among other things," he adds, "this station conducts research on algae that used to grow here when there were still subtropical temperatures, before they were frozen for millions of years. And the scientists are bringing them back to life, as the name ReLife suggests. In the revitalized organisms, these researchers have discovered previously unknown genes that could revolutionize the entire biotechnology industry — and even be useful for clean power generation. Now you see why our client wants to know at all costs whether it’s possible to obtain the research results and, if so, how."
While Ole’s gaze scans the sketch in front of him, Magnus signals with a hand gesture to the huskies, commanding the dogs to be absolutely quiet. "Let’s start figuring out how to gain access. Is there any way we can get inside?" he asks. Ole can’t help but laugh faintly in reply. "Not very likely," he answers. "As you can see, every inch of the outer area is carefully monitored with video cameras. They register not only anything that is approaching but also what the object is — whether a bird, a polar bear, or a person. And if it’s the latter, you can be sure they’ll sound an alarm." Magnus stares raptly at the reclining dogs for a moment and then tramps over to Ole to take a closer look at the layout of the station. "Even if we could make our way into the mountain," Ole continues, "we’d reach a dead end in front of every laboratory door, according to this map. There are hand scanners that use infrared technology to examine the structure of hands, down to the smallest wrinkles, including veins, and then automatically compare the structures with a database — and that in combination with biometric voice identification. It’s going to be impossible to crack all that."
His brother Magnus is slowly running out of patience. "But we have to get in there somehow," he insists. He sneezes. "Well, your cold isn’t going to make it easier," says Ole, trying to see the humor in their predicament. "There is also a biochip detector in front of every laboratory door. In just a few seconds it tests your breath for the presence of DNA components of certain bacteria, and other organisms that shouldn’t be allowed in the labs." "That reminds me," says Magnus, wiping off the fogged-up e-paper. "Pretty soon we won’t be able to see anything at all anymore thanks to our breath. If we can’t get in physically," he ponders, "then maybe virtually — for example with a specially programmed Trojan horse that we can use to spy on the computers and…"
"Not a chance," interrupts Ole without looking up from the map. "A completely new anti-virus program provides security for their IT system. It’s coordinated from the mainland headquarters with a quantum computer that can simulate all imaginable virus combinations and identify them during an attack."
Ole looks thoughtfully at the northern lights. "But the station here and the headquarters have to communicate with each other somehow. With a high-performance computer, we could crack the encryption and eavesdrop on the data traffic," he points out. But Magnus dismisses this too. "Forget it," he says. "Even a biologist like me can see from the e-paper that the satellite connection is using a quantum-cryptographic encryption system. And that means it’s not physically possible to crack the data flows — they’d notice any attempt at eavesdropping."
Ole is growing irritated. "Then it looks like there’s just no way for us to get the results. If that’s the case, our client says that we should then examine how we can manage to at least put a stop to the ReLife research." His biologist brother considers for a long moment. "We could use a drone to drop gas cartridges near the air shafts. That would destroy the highly sensitive micro-organisms." "That won’t work," says Ole. "I can see from the diagram that the whole complex, including the ventilation system, has fire alarms installed, equipped with gas sensors that our informant says are incredibly precise. Each of these devices can sniff out dangerous gases in the air and sound the alarm if there are any irregularities. Apparently, the same thing applies to the containers holding the organisms, in the storage rooms. Each of them has a wireless sensor chip that not only measures ambient data and the temperature but also uses an automated system to ensure the ideal air composition — which is different for each species of organism and storage chamber. As soon as these tiny sensors detect even the slightest anomaly, they seal off the air intake and mix their own air by means of reserve tanks."
"Well, I guess that settles it then," says Magnus wearily. He steps onto the dog sled and snaps his fingers. The dogs leap up instantly and jostle into formation. "What’s settled?" asks Ole. "The station is an impregnable fortress. What’s your opinion?" Ole nods and grins, placing a checkmark on the e-paper and putting it away. "Inspection passed," he says and climbs onto the sled as well. "ReLife — your client and my employer — is going to be very pleased, indeed," says Magnus. "I don’t think there is anyone who would stand a chance of infiltrating this place. Let’s write the report and call it a day. You’ll stay for dinner I hope, brother? Emma is making her famous reindeer roast tonight." "I wouldn’t consider missing out on a chance to experience the culinary skills of my sister-in-law," says Ole with a hearty laugh, giving the huskies a shout that sets them in motion: "Ready — let’s go!"