Spoilers Big Holodeck Security Problems in Lower Decks? - Debate

[Sarcastic Vulcan Salute]

In the aforementioned TNG episode "Booby Trap" the Holo-Leah Geordi creates is based of her public/open professional logs. When he's talking to Leah (before she is created and only speaking to him) Geordi asks her for the "real story" on something she mentions and the computer chimes in with, "personal logs are restricted access" or something to that effect.

So it's pretty damn absurd that Bradward was able to get access to the personal logs of the entire crew to create perfect simulations of them and to get personal, private, information about them like Mariner being the captain's daughter.

At least hypothetically, it seems feasible that Geordi didn't have access to the personal logs of Leah Brahms versus Boimler potentially having access to the personal logs of the Cerritos crew. Some thoughts:

1. Brahms is not a member of the Enterprise crew and there is no particular reason why her personal logs would be part of the Enterprise's databanks. Whereas obviously the personal logs of the Cerritos's crew are part of the Cerritos's databanks.
2. The Enterprise as the flagship of the fleet has the highest standards for everything in Starfleet, including addressing privacy concerns. The Cerritos isn't so strict.
3. "Restricted" doesn't necessarily mean "completely inaccessible." If for some reason Geordi actually needed to access to the personal logs of Brahms, I've no doubt that he could have gotten it eventually.

Boimler is apparently an awkwardly-inept genius, not a stupid or cunningly evil nemesis.

His tinkering with the holodeck and the creations of the crew, were meant to be for his personal use to help advance his career.
He never expected anybody else to take what he had done and modify it, so he probably didn't think using personal info was that big a deal, since nobody else would know and he wasn't actually looking for intimate details.
(just like Barclay did)

Everything that happened after that point is on Mariner, including letting slip her relationship to the Captain.


<side note>
I have to go back and watch episode one again, I thought sure by the end of that episode Bradward had realized that they were Mother & Daughter.
(which is why he didn't tattle on her)

We have to handwave that to achieve Boimler's objective, kissing up to the Captain and acing his interview, there is absolutely no need to download the personal logs -- or really any logs -- of any crew member. He could have just done a sim of Freeman and practiced interviews with it, and directly asked it questions like, "How can I ace this interview." Of course, then the episode wouldn't have happened.

Anyway, regardless of his intentions, he apparently managed to circumvent whatever lockouts were there. It's still his fault.

I'm not really sure accessing personal logs is really a "security problem." It's an invasion of privacy, but not a security issue. Anyway, the conceit in the episode is that the computer accessed the personal logs to create realistic representations of the Cerritos crew without Boimler actually reading them. After all, he was completely unaware Mariner is Freeman's daughter until holo-Freeman mentioned it towards the end. And I doubt doing this is against Starfleet regulations anyway since there's no way Boimler would actively and intentionally break the rules in such a manner.

If one can access personal logs of people as freely and apparently effortlessly as Boimler did, there is no telling how much blackmail material is in there. For instance, we learn that Freeman was desperately trying to hide that Mariner is her daughter. What other secrets does the crew have and how far would they go to keep them? Being vulnerable to blackmail should definitely be a security concern.

 

[Ronald Held]

Breaking personal logs is a security issue. Reading them might be a Starfleet violation.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

I watched it recently, and Boimler is not aware at the end.

I don't understand this. A holo-character who he created disclosed the information in front of him. He knows where the information came from, or it's something that he can very well guess. As something that the real captain believes, it's reliable. How was he not aware of it at the end?

 

[fireproof78]

I don't understand this. A holo-character who he created disclosed the information in front of him. He knows where the information came from, or it's something that he can very well guess. As something that the real captain believes, it's reliable. How was he not aware of it at the end?

I was talking about the first episode not the most recent one.

 

[NCC-73515]

There could be 2 (or more) levels of security for personal logs. You get access to just personal, but not top secret classified stuff, after someone died, like Geordi did when he investigated Aquiel's apparent death. Really sensitive stuff requires another level of clearance.

 

[Orphalesion]

Geordi built Hololeah from public information, right? Maybe the computer uses these logs to create a realistic personality, but no one gets to see the actual logs.

Though in Veritas Boimler states that he reads the logs of the senior officers all the time, that's how he knows about stuff Dr. T'ana mistaking the Alhambra for a parallel universe Cerritos.

and frankly I have no problems with Boimler being so obsessive about pleasing the senior officers (especially his Capp'n) that he hacks into and reads their logs to find more ways to suck up to them.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

I was talking about the first episode not the most recent one.

OK, I see. "Episode one."

Yes, I agree, it was a complete and utter surprise to Boimler in "Crisis Point" (episode nine).

 

[BillJ]

So it's pretty damn absurd that Bradward was able to get access to the personal logs of the entire crew to create perfect simulations of them and to get personal, private, information about them like Mariner being the captain's daughter.

Officially? He likely didn’t get permission. But he’s a smart boy and was desperate to impress his captain. So he got them through some other means.

 

[Sarcastic Vulcan Salute]

Though in Veritas Boimler states that he reads the logs of the senior officers all the time, that's how he knows about stuff Dr. T'ana mistaking the Alhambra for a parallel universe Cerritos.

I would have taken it that T'ana would write about that in her official log, covering what she experienced as an officer, as opposed to her personal one, which covers such subjects as her shaving habits and how tough it is to get cheese out of fur.

 

[Search4]

If the Holodeck can create Moriarity from a general description and request it can certainly use the logs to create a meaningful character.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

Though in Veritas Boimler states that he reads the logs of the senior officers all the time, that's how he knows about stuff Dr. T'ana mistaking the Alhambra for a parallel universe Cerritos.

and frankly I have no problems with Boimler being so obsessive about pleasing the senior officers (especially his Capp'n) that he hacks into and reads their logs to find more ways to suck up to them.

I would have taken it that T'ana would write about that in her official log, covering what she experienced as an officer, as opposed to her personal one [...]

I agree with @Sarcastic Vulcan Salute here. I just rewatched that part of "Veritas" to double-check. Boimler said, "I read all their logs." That doesn't necessarily mean that he reads their personal logs too, but it implies that he regularly reads their official logs, maybe all of their current output, though of course not necessarily all of the official logs they have ever, um, logged.

Obviously Boimler didn't read any of Freeman's personal logs that explicitly discuss her daughter, or else it wouldn't have been a surprise.

[...] which covers such subjects as her shaving habits and how tough it is to get cheese out of fur.

Ha!

 

[Orphalesion]

I would have taken it that T'ana would write about that in her official log, covering what she experienced as an officer, as opposed to her personal one, which covers such subjects as her shaving habits and how tough it is to get cheese out of fur.

It would be very entertaining to watch T'ana recording that log (about mistaking ships I mean)
And yeah I guess it's the more likelier version (considering that he didn't know about Mariner) but I still find the idea about him being so grovelling that he searches the private logs for ways to please the senior staff. I'm sure Rutherford or Tendi could help with getting access to them. Mariner could theoretically help too, but she'd just tell him it's a stupid idea and she has something better to do (while lying in her cod and playing tetris on her padd) plus she wouldn't help because she wouldn't want him to know she's related to Freeman.

If the Holodeck can create Moriarity from a general description and request it can certainly use the logs to create a meaningful character.

Was it just a general description or did the computer draw from all the material that was created for the character? Wasn't he a hugely popular villain back when he was created? Like Joker-levels popular? So I assume there's a lot of material about him from which the computer could draw information on to create a version of him.

 

[valkyrie013]

Yep, Bradward done some shenanigan's to get the personal logs. He may not have read them, but incorporated them in to his program to get real reactions of the crew. Maybe he found a loophole in the computer programing to get the computer to incorporate the logs. More than likey he absconded with them ..

As said in in Weekend at Bernies.. " What your doing is Illegal!"

 

[CorporalCaptain]

The key thing about Moriarty was how Geordi specified him to the computer [http://www.chakoteya.net/NextGen/129.htm]:

LAFORGE: Computer, arch.
PULASKI: Are you sure you want to put yourself through this, Lieutenant? Better wilted laurels than no laurels at all.
LAFORGE: Computer, override previous programme. Okay. A programme that definitely challenges Data.
PULASKI: Now it has to deal with events that he has no previous knowledge of.
LAFORGE: Computer, in the Holmesian style, create a mystery to confound Data with an opponent who has the ability to defeat him.
COMPUTER: Define parameters of programme.
PULASKI: What does that mean?
LAFORGE: Computer wants to know how far to take the game.
PULASKI: You mean it's giving you a chance to limit your risk.
LAFORGE: No, the parameters will be whatever is necessary in order to accomplish the directive. Create an adversary capable of defeating Data.​

The Holmesian style was just the flavor. The essential characteristic was that the character be "capable of defeating Data," and that characteristic (presumably) could have been applied to any flavor, whether like Holmes, da Vinci, Einstein, one of Yar's sparring partners, etc.