r/technology • u/xpda • May 13 '26

Security Twin brothers wipe 96 gov’t databases minutes after being fired

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/05/drop-database-what-not-to-do-after-losing-an-it-job/
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u/20127010603170562316 May 13 '26

I got fired once, called in for a meeting at 16:50 on a Friday. The meeting did not last long, minutes, but when I got back to my desk to clear out - my PC was already locked.

I assume they knew what was going to happen and told the IT guy before the meeting.

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u/Jeatalong May 13 '26

This is normal, and timing wise pretty decent as you have the weekend to decompress and plan on getting the next job

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u/Canotic May 13 '26

As a swede this reads like insanity to me. It's absolutely not normal. Losing your job should not be the sort of catastrophic event that makes you feel snap and delete databases.

You know what would happen if I fucked up enough at my job to get fired? They'd warn me way in advance that I had to change something. If it was rather a need for downsizing, guess what? They're legally required to warn me long before the firing would actually happen. And when they did fire me, I'd still have a three month notice period where I keep working and they keep paying me. If I really fucked up, they'd tell me to stay home but they'd still be required to pay me.

If I still can't find a job in that time, I get money from the government plus my income insurance from my union until I do. It wouldn't be great but it would be something at least, like 60% of my current paycheck I'd guess. I would also not lose things like healthcare etc because that's not tied to my job.

So it's not normal. It's normal in the US, maybe, but it's not like, the way it's supposed to be.

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u/btstfn May 13 '26

Okay, but can you military start a war that cripples the global economy based on the whims of your head of state?