FleetCommand

29th Aug 2018

Ocean's Eight (2018)

Factual error: A shot of Paul Damanian's computer's screen shows mostly a large wallpaper. At the bottom, there is a taskbar that resembles that of Windows 10. Judging from the task view icon, it is Windows 10 version 1709 or earlier. The taskbar is retouched: The Start button is missing, and the Microsoft Store icon is edited to have the Windows logo cropped out. The taskbar is missing the clock, and the Action Center icon appears before that of the Touch Keyboard icon. There are four icons on the desktop, but none have a label. The icons correspond to "This PC", "Contacts", "Documents" and "Pictures" but none are genuine Windows 10 icons. The "This PC" icon is from Windows 7, while the other three icons are edited versions of what's seen in Windows 10. There is a battery icon but this item appears on laptop computers only; this one is a Dell desktop computer. After clicking on the Search icon (Cortana seems to have been disabled) a task manager appears instead. Moreover, the task manager belongs macOS rather than Windows. No wonder the tasks shown in it moments later are running in the context of the "root" user account. Then an app is executed on that computer called "McCallister Security Visual Matrix Controller 3.1.1.5" but the window chrome indicates that it is a Linux app. (00:48:25 - 00:48:55)

FleetCommand

29th Aug 2018

Ocean's Eight (2018)

Factual error: This film repeats on of the classic mistakes that countless films have repeated since the invention of personal computers: It shows that letters in a password are discovered independent of each other. In reality, this is not possible. The computers themselves don't know the password; they only know a "hash digest" with which they can only determine if the password is 100% correct, or not. (If you need technical details, look up "Cryptographic hash function" on Wikipedia).

FleetCommand

13th May 2016

Under Siege 2 (1995)

Factual error: The film's plot violates the third of the Ten Immutable Laws of Security by Scott Culp. The premise of the law is: When one has physical access to a computer system, given enough time, he can take over the system. In the film, the reverse happens: Dane takes over an ATAC site remotely while people inside (who have complete physical access) cannot do anything to wrest the control back. In the real world, it is usually possible to simply cut the connection cable or antenna and take control back. (Even Windows XP and later have such simple lockdown provisions as part of Windows Firewall.) After the lockdown, the passcodes can be changed and other measures taken.

FleetCommand

Upvote valid corrections to help move entries into the corrections section.

Suggested correction: They don't have physical access to the satellite. It is in orbit, it is impossible to have physical access unless they had someone on the satellite.

That would be a plausible explanation, had it been in the film. But in the film, Dane hacked into ATAC system, not the satellite. That's how he implemented bogus satellites.

FleetCommand

You also have to remember Dane designed and wrote the software that ATAC is using. He may have written in access stuff that can't be disabled. So they couldn't have disconnected the building and gotten back control of their systems. There is no way that they could have gotten back control of their satellite.

An yet, the exact opposite happened at the end of the film: Ryback shot Dane's laptop, severing his persistent remote connection. Immediately, ATAC personnel regained control of the satellite. It appears you're smarter than the filmmakers and would make a better film if you tried. But it also appears that they've made not one but several mistakes here.

FleetCommand

13th May 2016

Under Siege 2 (1995)

Factual error: The main premise of the film is ATAC's loss of control over their orbital weapon and their attempt to prevent it from doing damage. According to ATAC, they needed to know where the weaponized satellite is, so that they can lock onto it and send it a self-destruct order via radio waves. This isn't how the real world works: Radio waves emit in all directions from its transmitting source. The location of the satellite need not to be known; only it must be within the reach of the ATAC's signal.

FleetCommand

Endgame - S1-E12

Continuity mistake: General Iroh attacks a squadron of five combat planes belonging to Amon. He downs two immediately. One fires back and ascends. At this time, the face of the pilot is shown. The other two descend. Iroh follows and destroys them. At this time, the ascending plane drops bombs. Again the face of the pilot is shown, but the pilot is a completely different one. The first time, he has a taller face, thick eyebrows, a pair of round and brown-tinted goggles and no mustache. The second time, the face is rounder, the eyebrows are thinner, the goggles are rectangular and pale, and there is a mustache. (00:08:10)

FleetCommand

Reunion - S4-E7

Plot hole: Guards at a security checkpoint attack Varrick and Bolin, because a wanted poster identifies them as fugitive traitors. The problem is that poster cannot have been there. Varrick and Bolin escape in the previous episode (Battle of Zaofu) but are captured minutes afterwards. (So, no posters needed.) The next day, they escape again by blowing up their imprisoning train car. Their captor, Bataar, thinks they are dead. Indeed, Varrick intended to die. Later, Bataar is actually shown reporting them dead. One might argue that the poster wasn't a wanted poster, but one that warned people about the empire making an example of the traitors.This argument is too flawed: The empire had many examples already, some very high-profile. And a propaganda poster must be placed in plain sight, not in a security booth corner especially designated to let security guards compare the passing individuals. (00:14:00)

FleetCommand

3rd Nov 2014

Transformers (2007)

Factual error: While fighting Scorponok in Qatar, the special ops team requests a gunship to attack with 105 shells. The gunships confirms but no 105mm shot is fired. The gunships fires three rapidly firing cannons within 17 seconds. 105mm shells cause a massive explosion upon impact, and aren't reloaded that rapidly because of their weight. (00:44:05)

FleetCommand

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