Preview: The Collective (10/22/11)

I wrote last week about the untimely demise of my beloved Kindle. I'm still in mourning. I have learned to rely heavily on my ever-present companion and reading on-the-go wherever I might be. Her loss has made a huge impact on my reading time and therefore my regular Friday reviews. With Kindle I could devour a novel a week and write a review easily. Without her...

I now have a backlog waiting of wonderful books to read and review. I apologize to the great writers who have shared their work with me and the readers who come to read my reviews. I will get back to reading and writing soon. For today I offer a preview of my latest novel, which releases October 22. I hope you enjoy this short excerpt from THE COLLECTIVE.

Wire Service Article
Authorities reported a new lead in the push to track down the person(s) responsible for the infamous ArchAngel virus, which has infected computers worldwide. Ellen Gray, of the Department of Homeland Security Cyber-Terrorism Unit, reported today that there is evidence the virus was initially released in New York by an escaped mental patient. John Peterson, who allegedly released the virus almost a year ago, previously worked as a doctor of criminal Psychology at a New York State Department of Corrections Mental Facility. Authorities believe it was at that facility the virus was produced, with the help of some of Dr. Peterson's patients.
“Several of his patients were serving time for various cyber crimes and quite capable of aiding the doctor in coding the insidious worm virus,” Ms. Gray reported.
Dr. Peterson became unstable after the death of a close friend, who authorities believe also worked on the virus. Mike Angelo, owner of a software development company, committed suicide after his company slipped into bankruptcy. Authorities say the two were the chief architects behind the ArchAngel virus and, after Angelo's death, Dr. Peterson fell into a psychotic state which required he be forcibly committed to the county mental hospital. Dr. Peterson later escaped that facility and released the virus onto the Internet.
Authorities seized computers at both facilities. Dr. Peterson's current location is unknown and authorities warn that he is unstable and possibly dangerous. The ArchAngel virus, Ms. Gray reported, uses subliminal suggestion and is thought to have caused Dr. Peterson's breakdown.
“They were experimenting with some form of mind control technology,” Ms. Gray reported, “we are not sure yet what their eventual use for this technology was to be. That is why Homeland Security became involved. Unfortunately their experiments most likely led to Dr. Peterson's current delusional state and possibly the death of Mike Angelo. In his delusional state Dr. Peterson has released this dangerous technology on the public.”
Citizens are urged to report any sign of the ArchAngel virus to authorities and to not use infected systems.
“This technology is dangerous,” Ms Gray told us. “There are already cults of followers within the hacker community who have elevated Dr. Peterson, under his hacker name CG, to hero status. His personal delusion is spreading with the virus.”
We visited one such community of hackers to see what they had to say about Ms. Gray's announcement. The local cyber club proudly displays the ArchAngel symbol on its marquee. The symbol, developed by hackers to mark hot spots infected with the ArchAngel virus, is a variation on the anarchy symbol and has become a symbol of pride in some communities.
“Nemesis is the real threat,” one hacker told me. “CG developed ArchAngel to destroy the Nemesis virus.”
Dr. Peterson, or CG, has become a cult hero among these groups. I asked Ms. Gray later about Nemesis.
“Nemesis is an anti-virus program being developed to combat ArchAngel,” she informed me. “It is currently in beta testing. It will be released once it can effectively detect and eliminate ArchAngel.”
The ArchAngel virus is not currently detectable by any of the popular anti-virus programs, but a task force has been assembled, including top programmers from all the major anti-virus companies, to work on a solution.
“They are being fed all the information we have on ArchAngel in order to develop an open solution, known as Nemesis, which can be incorporated into their companies security programs,” Ms. Gray confided.
The group is known simply as the Collective. The names of the task-force members are not being released.

You can follow Dr. John Peterson (aka CG) on twitter @ArchAngelCG for the latest news on the Collective's activities and the ArchAngel movement.

"If they control your computer, they control your mind."

The Collective : 10/22/11