New Zealand's National Institute of Water and Atmospheric Research (NIWA) has deployed perhaps the ultimate security device - an RJ 45 plug's locking tab - to protect its 34 Tflops FitzRoy supercomputer after its security was breached. The locking tab was employed after the $NZ12.7 million machine, installed in 2011, was …

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Monday 26th May 2014 01:25 GMT Paddy 1

or most plausible

to mine alt coins

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1. Monday 26th May 2014 20:22 GMT Anonymous Coward
  
  Re: or most plausible
  
  I expect it will be back it it's normal job of rendering CGI frames for Sheep Porn by tomorrow...
  
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2. Monday 2nd June 2014 12:49 GMT DoctorNine
  
  Re: or most plausible
  
  Mining bitcoin was my first thought, actually.
  
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Monday 26th May 2014 01:34 GMT Sebastian A

Wait....

We have a supercomputer?

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1. Monday 26th May 2014 02:17 GMT Coen Dijkgraaf
  
  Re: Wait....
  
  Yep, an IBM Power 575 supercomputer http://www.niwa.co.nz/videos/fitzroy-niwas-new-supercomputer
  
  Not in the top 500 list of supercomputers though.
  
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2. Monday 26th May 2014 02:35 GMT LaeMing
  
  Re: Wait....
  
  Being in the land of hydrothermal, I guess there is also a reasonable chance it is technically steam-powered, too!
  
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  1. Monday 26th May 2014 03:11 GMT kain preacher
    
    Re: Wait....
    
    Steam punk super computer.
    
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3. Monday 26th May 2014 04:25 GMT Shugyosha
  
  Re: Wait....
  
  Yup, fully equipped with the latest in microchup technology.
  
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Monday 26th May 2014 07:26 GMT Charles Manning

Botnet - nah

No point in botting a supercomputer. These things are always heavily BOFHed so bottery would be spotted soon. Much better to bot Joe Sixpack's home desktop.

As for connectivity to secret govt agencies... anyone thinking that has never met NIWA people. They tend to be seriously lefty greenies. Any spooks would have serious fences between themselves and NIWA.

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1. Monday 26th May 2014 15:00 GMT bpfh
  
  Re: Botnet - nah
  
  How long would it take to mine a bitcoin on one of those things anyway?
  
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Monday 26th May 2014 08:38 GMT OzBob

No great loss

even our weather is 20 yeas behind the times.

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Tuesday 27th May 2014 03:12 GMT Scott 26

Our mainstream media last night described Fitzroy as being so powerful it was classified as a weapon by the US.

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1. Tuesday 27th May 2014 07:02 GMT OzBob
  
  Mind you, this is also the mainstream that think
  
  that Kim Dot Com is an Entrepeneur and that he didn't form his own political party to prevent his extradition. Go figure.
  
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Tuesday 27th May 2014 12:20 GMT Heathroi

'users switched to a backup facility in the city of Hamilton."

NOOOOO, NOT THE HAMILTON FACILITY, WE'D RATHER RATHER THE RISK OF BEING BOTNETTED.

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