It was supposed to be a routine hiring exercise. A candidate receives a technical assignment, reviews the provided material, and prepares a solution. Then someone notices that the "anonymous" dataset isn't anonymous at all. What follows is an uncomfortable discovery involving confidential business information, questions about data handling, and an unexpected conversation with legal.

In this episode of IT Horror Stories with Jack Smith, we discuss how good intentions, poorly sanitized data, and assumptions about anonymity can quickly transform a recruitment exercise into an information security incident. Along the way, we explore data governance, confidentiality, risk management, and what organizations should do when they discover they've shared information they never intended to expose.

Want even more info ? Read our show notes and related blog post related to this episode : https://blog.ithorrorstories.eu/gdpr-enters-the-chat/

00:00 Introduction
02:18 Security Breach
03:25 Social Engineering Risk
10:54 Company Response
12:46 Final Thoughts

Printing is one of those technologies everyone assumes should have been solved years ago — until someone can't print invoices, shipping labels stop coming out, or 50,000 customer letters suddenly disappear into a print queue somewhere. In this episode, we take a tour through the strange and surprisingly complex world of printing: from small desktop printers and office multifunction devices to enterprise print servers and industrial mass-mailing environments that still move serious business.

We explore why printing continues to survive every digital transformation, what actually happens behind the scenes when you click "Print," and why reliability suddenly becomes very important when paper turns into payroll, warehouse labels, customer communication, or operational downtime. Because nothing reminds people that IT exists faster than when the printer stops working.

Want even more info ? Read our show notes and related blog post related to this episode : https://blog.ithorrorstories.eu/episode-15-spooling-out-of-control/

00:00 IT Horror Stories
02:00 Industrial Printing
06:00 Printer Installation
11:00 Mission Critical Printing
15:00 High Volume Printing
17:30 DTP and Mac Systems
24:00 Printing Challenges

Welcome to the story of a perfectly known and visible laptop that somehow became critical production infrastructure inside a warehouse environment — without going through proper validation, testing, or operational review. The system worked, solved an immediate problem, and was quickly integrated into daily operations... right up until the laptop entered sleep mode and warehouse activities ground to a halt.

What followed was a frantic investigation into why scanners stopped working, workflows froze, and logistics operations suddenly stalled because of a standard power-saving setting. It's a story about how quickly "temporary" operational solutions can become business-critical, and why governance, testing, and basic operational checks matter far more than people realize — especially when convenience quietly reaches production.

Want even more info ? Read our show notes and related blog post related to this episode : https://blog.ithorrorstories.eu/episode-14-sleep-mode-in-production/

00:00 Introduction
01:32 Early 2000s IT
03:07 Warehouse Down
05:07 Troubleshooting Begins
09:23 Cable Chaos
11:18 Director's Laptop
15:57 Lessons Learned
21:31 Conclusion

We explore a hypothetical ransomware scenario that mirrors what many organizations could face today. Imagine a normal day where systems suddenly become inaccessible, data is encrypted, and the scope of the attack starts to unfold in real time. What follows is a race against the clock, with teams trying to understand what's happening while keeping critical operations alive.

More importantly, we focus on the response and recovery: the trade-offs, the communication challenges, and the lessons organizations can take away before something like this actually happens. Because ransomware isn't just a technical problem — it's an operational and human one, where preparation and clarity matter as much as the tools in place.

Want even more info ? Read our show notes and related blog post related to this episode : https://blog.ithorrorstories.eu/episode-13-ransomware-lockdown/

00:00 Introduction
01:05 Ransomware Explained
03:08 Attack Entry Points
06:16 Employee Training
13:00 AI Phishing Threats
20:18 Data Leaks Aftermath
25:26 Cybersecurity in Mergers
28:18 Recovery Steps
33:04 Conclusion

The Boeing 747 is often cited online as proof that aviation still runs on floppy disks — but the reality is a bit more nuanced. In this Rant, we take a closer look at how certain older aircraft, particularly some 747-400 configurations, still use floppy disks to load navigation data into their Flight Management Systems. It's not about being outdated — it's about reliability, certification, and systems that have proven themselves over decades of operation.

We also compare this against the wider IT world, where legacy systems continue to power critical operations for the exact same reasons. From aviation to enterprise IT, the story isn't about old technology refusing to die — it's about why replacing it is often far more complicated than it seems.

Want even more info ? Read our show notes and related blog post related to this episode : https://blog.ithorrorstories.eu/jacks-rants-floppy-disks-at-35000-feet/

All other links and socials : https://links.ithorrorstories.eu/

00:00 Old Tech in Flight
01:14 747-400 Spotlight
02:17 Why Floppy Disks?
03:48 Industry Examples
07:48 IT World Mirror
09:22 Modern Tensions
09:58 Lighthearted Wrap

Conducted during a busy release weekend, the failover test exposed gaps not in the technology itself, but in coordination and communication. While production ultimately stayed unaffected, the situation quickly escalated as subcontractors weren't aligned, assumptions didn't match reality, and information didn't flow when it mattered most.

We unpack how a well-intentioned test turned into a coordination challenge, where timing, dependencies, and unclear responsibilities created confusion across teams. It's a story about how resilience isn't just about systems and infrastructure, but also about people, processes, and making sure everyone is on the same page — especially when things are supposed to "just be a test."

Want even more info ? Read our show notes and related blog post related to this episode : https://blog.ithorrorstories.eu/episode-12-the-failover-that-failed-successfully/

All other links and socials : https://links.ithorrorstories.eu/

00:00 Welcome & Setup
01:34 Corporate Environments
03:30 Failover Planning
07:19 Double Disaster
09:08 Critical Failure
13:20 Realization Moment
15:28 Split Brain
17:34 The Recovery
21:13 Lessons Learned
31:32 Conclusion

In this short episode, Jack takes a look at the current state of the IT hiring market — where job postings seem plentiful, but actual opportunities often feel strangely elusive. From "entry-level" roles asking for a decade of experience to companies searching for the mythical full-stack, cloud, DevOps, security expert all in one person, we discuss the growing gap between job descriptions and reality. With a bit of sarcasm and a lot of firsthand observation, we unpack what's going on in tech hiring right now and why so many professionals feel like the market has become a puzzle nobody quite understands.

Want even more info ? Read our show notes and related blog post related to this episode : https://blog.ithorrorstories.eu/jacks-rant-it-hiring-chaos/

All other links and socials : https://links.ithorrorstories.eu/

00:00 Introduction
00:39 Market Struggles
02:22 Hardware Shortages
02:56 Merged Roles
05:12 Interview Issues
08:31 AI's Impact
10:18 Conclusion

A few hundred field engineers. Real humans. With vans. And jobs. All coordinated by a device roughly the size of a coaster and powered by something suspiciously similar to a phone charger.

For months, it runs slow but flawlessly. Tickets dispatched. Routes optimized. Managers happy. The tiny silicon hero hums along in its noble plastic case, bravely pretending it's not one 'apt upgrade' away from a crisis.

Join us as we unravel the mystery, debate the true definition of "production-ready," and ask the question no one wanted to say out loud.

Want even more info ? Read our show notes and related blog post related to this episode : https://blog.ithorrorstories.eu/episode-11-raspberry-mistery/

All other links and socials : https://links.ithorrorstories.eu/

00:00 Welcome Back
01:23 Shadow IT Chaos
05:18 Major Outage
12:04 Data Center Discovery
17:59 Where's the Server?
19:58 Raspberry Pi Reveal
25:13 Migration Success
30:36 Closing Thoughts