Asperity Hackdoku
Welcome to Hackdoku

Where real cases get solved.

At Odido the data of millions of people ends up out in the open after one phone call. At Twitter the accounts of Obama and Musk ask for bitcoin, after a few phone calls. At Maastricht University everything locks up, after one click. It sounds made up, but these hacks really happened.

Often it comes down to one small, human choice. Now you are the detective. Read what everyone says, work out who was where and find out who it was. Along the way you see how to avoid it yourself.

Open your first case

The case files

01 The Wrong Phone Call One phone call, and the data of millions of people is out in the open. Odido, the Netherlands · 2026 Read the real story
02 The Fake Helpdesk A few phone calls to employees, and the accounts of Obama, Biden and Musk ask for bitcoin. Twitter, United States · 2020 Read the real story
03 One Click Too Many An email, a click, and two months later Maastricht University is locked. Maastricht University, the Netherlands · 2019 Read the real story
04 The Aquarium Leak A casino, an aquarium and a thermometer that knew too much. North America · 2017 Read the real story
05 The Fake Colleague Someone calls the helpdesk and says he is a colleague. That is how he gets a password. Clorox, United States · 2023 Read the real story
06 The Update That Waited Hospitals have to cancel patients because of an update that was left waiting. United Kingdom · 2017 Read the real story
07 The Power Cut A virus wipes a global shipping company, except for one computer in Africa. Denmark · 2017 Read the real story
08 The Empty Shelves The shelves run empty because someone pulls the plug just in time. The Netherlands · 2026 Read the real story
09 Welcome2020 A municipality goes down because of a password anyone could guess. Municipality of Hof van Twente, the Netherlands · 2020 Read the real story
10 The Forgotten Account One old account without 2FA, and people in the eastern US queue for petrol. Colonial Pipeline, United States · 2021 Read the real story

How to solve a case

Put everyone on the floor plan: every row and column holds exactly one person. Whoever is alone in the room named in the case is the one you are looking for. Stuck? A hint explains why it can only be that way.

Then you hear the real story: what went wrong, what happened next and what can you learn from it?