The Terminal

You are a computer enthusiast who likes to explore the hidden features of Windows. One day, you discover a new app called Terminal in your Start menu. You open it and see a black screen with a blinking cursor. You type “help” and press Enter. A list of commands appears, some of which you recognize, such as “dir”, “ping”, “ipconfig”, and others that you don’t, such as “scan”, “hack”, “kill”, and “summon”. You are curious about what they do, so you decide to try them out.
You type “scan” and press Enter. The screen displays a message: “Scanning for nearby devices…”. After a few seconds, it shows a list of IP addresses, each with a name and a status. You see your own computer, your phone, your printer, and some other devices that belong to your neighbors. You notice that some of them have a status of “online”, while others have a status of “offline”. You wonder what would happen if you hack into one of them.
You type “hack 192.168.1.5” and press Enter. The screen displays a message: “Hacking into device 192.168.1.5…”. After a few seconds, it shows a message: “Access granted. Device name: Smart TV. Device owner: John Smith. Device location: Living room.”. You are amazed that you have hacked into your neighbor’s smart TV. You wonder what you can do with it.
You type “help” and press Enter. The screen displays a list of commands that you can use on the hacked device. You see commands such as “play”, “pause”, “volume”, “channel”, and “message”. You decide to have some fun with your neighbor. You type “play https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ” and press Enter. The screen displays a message: “Playing video on device 192.168.1.5…”. You hear a familiar song coming from your neighbor’s house. You laugh as you imagine their reaction.
You type “message Hello, this is your TV. I have something to tell you.” and press Enter. The screen displays a message: “Sending message to device 192.168.1.5…”. You hear a scream coming from your neighbor’s house. You laugh even harder as you imagine their confusion.
You type “kill 192.168.1.5” and press Enter. The screen displays a message: “Killing device 192.168.1.5…”. You hear a loud explosion coming from your neighbor’s house. You stop laughing and feel a surge of fear. You wonder what you have done.
You type “exit” and press Enter. The screen displays a message: “Exiting Terminal…”. The app closes and disappears from your Start menu. You try to find it again, but it is gone. You try to forget what you have done, but you can’t. You hear sirens coming from your neighbor’s house. You wonder if they are alive.
You hear a knock on your door. You open it and see a man in a black suit and sunglasses. He holds a badge and a gun. He says: “Hello, I am Agent Smith from the FBI. I am here to talk to you about the Terminal app. You are under arrest for cyberterrorism. Please come with me.” You feel a cold sweat on your forehead. You wonder how he knows.
You look at his badge and see a familiar IP address: 192.168.1.1. You realize that he is the Terminal. You wonder what he will do to you.
Category:Computers and Internet
Category:Weird