2077: Heist

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Revision as of 13:40, 27 November 2018 by 172.68.58.83 (talk)
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Heist
But he has a hat AND a toolbox! Where could someone planning a heist get THOSE?
Title text: But he has a hat AND a toolbox! Where could someone planning a heist get THOSE?

Explanation

Ambox notice.png This explanation may be incomplete or incorrect: Created by a SUPPOSED REPAIRMAN. Please mention here why this explanation isn't complete. Do NOT delete this tag too soon.
If you can address this issue, please edit the page! Thanks.

In many movies, a heist or other crime is carried out by the criminal(s) posing as some type of repairman or similar. The criminal then gains access to their target through the disguise. This is a form of social engineering. Due to the prevalence of this trope, Cueball is concerned whenever somebody comes by to ask for access as he believes the person may be planning a crime, and making him a "minor character."

The title text seems to be Cueball's internal monologue trying to calm himself down. He points out to himself that the repairman has both a hat (possibly with a company logo) and a toolbox full of tools, then sarcastically asks himself how a thief could possible get their hands on such a disguise.

Transcript

Ambox notice.png This transcript is incomplete. Please help editing it! Thanks.
[A man in a cap with a toolbox approaches Cueball]
Person: Do you have the key to the server room? I'm from the building and I'm here to check the fire alarm.
Cueball (thinking): Oh no oh no
[Caption beneath the frame:]
Thanks to movies, whenever anyone asks me to open any door, I immediately assume I'm a minor character in a heist.


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Discussion

You know, this isn't just a movie trope, this is an actual technique that is used ALL the time: https://youtu.be/rnmcRTnTNC8?t=2000 Is this worth mentioning in the explanation? Cgrimes85 (talk) 16:42, 26 November 2018 (UTC)

Probably because it works, and it probably works because real service people are really this bad authenticated. It's even worse in emergency: there is rarely time for proper authentication during emergency ... which is why the criminals would create or fake an emergency to get in. -- Hkmaly (talk) 00:22, 27 November 2018 (UTC)
Last place I worked letting a guy in without a current visitor's pass *and* an escort was a termination offense, and they ran drills regularly, and everyone knew someone who knew someone who'd gotten canned for it, or said they knew someone anyway. -- Resuna (talk) 20:36, 28 November 2018 (UTC)

The movie Dope does a reverse cryptocurrency heist. That counts, right? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dope_%282015_film%29

There are no movies about cryptocurrency heists yet (to the best of my knowledge), but this is probably how one would look like.

Tweaked the grammar in the early, short explanation. Didn't fundamentally change the text, but I'm not sure that worrying about being "a minor character" is quite correct as the text of the comic quantifies that as being _in a heist_. Cueball's worries may not just be about his life being nothing more than a minor character in a movie, but possibly also of potential legal / professional liability as an accessory or accomplice. By knowing or supposing that the one asking for access is a criminal and/or should not have access -- and granting it anyway -- that may be enough to charge him with facilitation of the crime as it is (in some jurisdictions) a crime to "provide" a person with "means or opportunity" to commit a crime, "believing it probable that he is rendering aid to a person who intends to commit a crime."

But he has a white hat! We don't have to worry if they wear a white hat, right? On the other hand, he's "from the building"? What the heck does that mean? Cueball best knock the white hat off to eliminate any cognitive dissonance and then call his supervisor. 172.68.90.112 19:28, 26 November 2018 (UTC) SiliconWolf

I interpreted “from the building” as meaning that (he claims) he’s with the people who own the building, while the people who Cueball’s affiliated with (presumably some corporation) just rent it from them. The building owners stand to lose a lot more than the renters if the building burns down, so they presumably want to deal with smoke detectors themselves.
From |"The Building" might _also_ refer to the TV series about people trapped in skyscaper which is actually an alternate reality. .. But I seriously doubt it. ..or do I? Iggynelix (talk) 21:40, 26 November 2018 (UTC)
I thought "from the building" was a clue, like a badly worded phishing msg. I also thought the mouse-over was the typical clueless/naive, not sarcastic Afbach (talk)
Minor characters in movies like this tend to suffer unpleasant consequences ... I figured Cueball was worried about being gunned down, or fed into a wood chipper. Cosmogoblin (talk) 13:01, 29 November 2018 (UTC)

Is it just me or is that cap really nicely drawn? 162.158.114.40 14:46, 27 November 2018 (UTC)

I was thinking the exact same thing! Randall has really been upping his game over the years! 108.162.245.244 15:17, 27 November 2018 (UTC)