Chapter 504

[How unethical! I used to think GrabCheap was a reliable platform that prioritized user experience and had affordable prices. I often bought small things there. Never again!]

[Was this some kind of employee screw-up? They’re not even trying to hide it anymore?]

[I was wondering why I’ve been getting so many scam calls and messages lately. Turns out this was the reason? This is no different from running around naked!]

[Greedy capitalists! Go to hell!]

[Last time, they could still use the hacker excuse, but this time? No one attacked them, right? Their tech is crap, and their people are worse!]

[Boycott GrabCheap! Take the app off the shelves!]

As soon as the news broke, the internet was flooded with calls to boycott GrabCheap and Bree Technology. Occasionally, a few voices urged rationality and suggested waiting for an official explanation, but a sea of angry netizens and internet trolls instantly drowned them out.

After Aubree’s kidnapping, Bree Technology’s already plummeting stock price took another huge hit. The sharp drop made even those initially sympathetic and reassured about Aubree’s condition panic.

“Ms. Cherniavsky, you said Ms. Miller is okay, but can we at least get a sign from her? We’ve been calling, but her phone’s off. And now this whole GrabCheap scandal…”

“We keep calling, but her phone’s always off. And now with this whole GrabCheap fiasco…” another person chimed in, frustration clear in their voice.

Some more hot-tempered investors even began spinning conspiracy theories. “Birgitte, is it possible that Aubree knew something like this would happen, so she faked her kidnapping to escape the fallout?”

Some investors, confident in their foresight, immediately pulled out, and many of Bree Technology’s business projects were temporarily halted by partners who didn’t want to commit unless Aubree could resolve the issue. Otherwise, they would demand compensation for breach of contract.

Despite the growing pressure, Birgitte remained calm. “If you trust me, and you trust Ms. Miller, then you should put your hearts at ease.”

Of course, there were still a few partners more concerned about whether Bree Technology needed help, like Manchotech Group and Windward Group.

She reported the situation to Aubree. Despite rumors of hiding or even being dead, Aubree was very much alive and sitting on her couch, watching the news about the massive data leak from GrabCheap, Bree Technology’s e-commerce platform.

Aubree’s gaze darkened, but she barely reacted to Birgitte’s report. “Let them be. In a crisis, those who can’t stick with you are just opportunists. Once you stand high enough, people like them are a dime a dozen. And this is just part of our plan. If something real had happened, their actions would have been nothing less than stabbing us in the back.”

Birgitte replied, “Of course, expecting loyalty in business is laughable. Let them regret it later.”

Aubree asked, “Did we catch the mole?”

Birgitte replied. “We’ve narrowed it down. Just need one final step.”

Aubree nodded. “Good. Handle it.”

After the last hacking incident, Aubree was convinced that someone inside had been planted by the Wilson family. But with too many people involved and the mole hiding well, she had no way to catch them.

Once the kidnapping happened, she guessed the Wilson family would make a move, and the mole would act.

The data leak was real, but whether the leaked info was actual user data was another story.

Aubree smiled slightly. When Alvin came to rebuild the servers for her, did they really think she’d leave such a fatal vulnerability unattended?

First, she borrowed people from Bowen to strengthen the internal defenses. Then she hired unrelated tech specialists to add another layer modeled after Bowen’s methods.

Under normal operation, everything looked fine. But once attacked, the dual-layer protection would show its worth.

If the attacker came from within, they would only breach the outer defense and leak the decoy data. But they were just a bunch of fake information created by her people. To find the real data, you’d have to break through both layers.

And these two protective systems were independent and constantly evolving.

In other words, even if Alvin and Bowen joined forces, they might not be able to break through GrabCheap’s current defenses.

As Bowen once said, “Be wary of everyone. Never let anyone hold a deadly weakness over you.”

He said that to warn her about Alvin. She took that advice and used it against him as well.

Aubree smiled to herself, feeling like she had just gotten away with something clever.

The data leak scandal had barely caused a stir for half a day before tech experts began analyzing the leaked screenshots and data.

[Hey, don’t you guys think this so-called leaked data looks kinda… weird?]

[More than weird. Check out the verified expert’s post on X.]

A verified account had just posted a blog breaking down the incident.

[At first, I thought the company had truly lost its mind. But after I analyzed it, I burst out laughing. Someone clearly set this up to target Bree Technology, but didn’t even know what they were doing. All the leaked data? Completely fake. Just made up.]

To prove his point, the expert hacked into what was supposedly GrabCheap’s “hole-ridden and vulnerable server and pulled out a set of sequential user data.

[When you line these user names up, the first characters of each name spell out, I, D, I, O, T.]

The once-outraged public collectively fell silent. It seemed like it was roasting them.

[Seriously, GrabCheap isn’t even trying to hide the joke now. Those trolls must feel like clowns. Can’t even tell the leaked data is fake?]

[What is this? One user ID is 10086, and the profile photo is my childhood idol.]

[I’m speechless. My childhood idol crawled out of the TV just to shop on GrabCheap?]

The narrative flipped so fast it gave people whiplash. But more importantly, the public finally felt relieved. Nobody wants their personal data posted on some sketchy website.

Bryan, who had been watching Bree Technology closely, stared in disbelief when he saw the new updates.

‘Fake? How could that be?’ Bryan’s mind reeled.

Patrick said that after Alvin rebuilt the servers, there was a vulnerability. Once breached from the inside, it would leak everything. It shouldn’t be fake.

Even if he didn’t trust Patrick, that was Alvin’s own assessment. It shouldn’t have gone wrong.

Aubree trusted Alvin deeply. She shouldn’t take precautions against him.

Panic set in immediately. With Bree Technology in trouble, Bryan’s father had been in a great mood and even seemed ready to hand the company over to him. This couldn’t fall apart now.

He quickly called Patrick.

At Bree Technology’s Südlichen Strand branch conference room, Birgitte sat at the head of the table with her assistant, a few security guards at the door, and several members of the tech team present.

Besides her, there were a few tech department employees in the room.

Some looked calm, others confused, and a few were clearly nervous.

With a cold face, Birgitte looked at the row of phones in front of her.

“Birgitte, did something happen?” Patrick asked with a smile.