Hacker Party Tricks, suggestions for hacks Options

[BlackHat]

[blakkie]

Stealth Tags can border on a GM fiat tool to allow tracing some item. Perception checks can be extremely difficult to detect them in the meat, especially if they were built right into solid parts of the item.

Although they won't leave a trail across matrix nodes like a normal tag would (because they don't broadcast their presence), it is nearly undetectable when leaving a trail to someone that knows it is there, knows the code, and is following it. The tracker just needs to be able to continue jumping node to node to stay within range. How tough this would be to do kinda depends on how the Matrix is ruled. The "easy" way is if you are allowed to manually control packet routing yourself to utilize a node's transmission ability without logging into the node itself. If this wasn't allowed you'd need to log into node to node, which would be extremely difficult to do without valid login on all or most of the nodes since you'd be constantly hacking on the fly.

It might appear in the logs on the nodes where it was checked from, so the tracker would want to leave have an Agent or a partner busy cleaning up afterward to keep the person being trailed via the secure tag from finding this out by breaking into the node's logs.

In theory a Scanner might eventually manage detect the raw radio signals (even off normal frequency ones), but if you don't have it on an active list and the requests made to the stealth tag are very sporatic, success it would be very difficult and a long time coming.

A specialization of a Locate Object spell could possibliy find them too, but it needs a large number of hits to actually find the secure tags (distinguishing it from a disabled normal tag would be tough too, depending on GM ruling, so you might have to find and remove ALL tags if you don't get enough hits) to be able to remove it.

The only thing that seems a sure-fire way to be able to get around Secure Ids quickly and safely is popping the item that is possibly tagged a jammer. Preferably a head jammer that doesn't create a huge red flag as you walk around stomping on all transmissions. :)

[PlatonicPimp]

As for the bullets: Yes, I know an RFID tag can't run an agent. And I know that there are none of these bullets in the rules.

I am making these up based on a few assumptions I've made regarding the technology level.

Assumption 1: RFID tags are little dots smaller than a penny and as thin as a sticker. If a signal 1 device plus data storage can be that small, a larger device can include more.

Assumption 2: If a Stick and shock round has room in it for a capacitor capable of doing significant damage to an opponent in the size of a normal bullet, Plus the sticky stuff, then it has a lot of room for our electronic bug.

Assumption 3: Miniturization of electronic devices make the size of a commlink based largely on user interface and not on hardware.

Assumption 4: Even with the above stated, only a very rudimentary, specialized processor could do what we want in the space we have it, and even then only at a low rating.

None of these are facts, or rules supported. They just seem reasonable to me.

Hacker bullets are not commercially made or sold. They must be custom built using the armorer skill. They come in two grades. The simple version is just a secure RFID tag in a stick round, with skinlink. The base cost is the stick n shock round, the secure RFID tag and the skinlink. Then the armorer chack must be made ( I have no book, so I won't even guess at threshold.) All and all, a pretty expensive bullet.

The hacker in a bullet model would require the sticky round, the hardware for a Response 1 or 2 commlink, the skinlink, an appropriate operating system and programs/agents. It would require a hardware test with a high threshold to construct the computer, and an armorer check to add it to the bullet. It would also require a software check to configure the system to operate properly. A rediculously expensive bullet that will work worse than trying to hack thourgh the first type, but feasable and possibly useful if you want to overwhelm your opponent with hacking attempts.