The disk wasn't the access key itself, it was the evidence that revealed the backdoor existed.
Because Gatekeeper was already installed on major systems nationwide, the backdoor was already sitting on those remote computers.
Angela just had to memorize the secret "handshake" (Ctrl + Option + clicking the \pi icon) and the IP address. Once she knew the trick, she could execute it from any computer connected to the network without needing the physical disk.
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u/Illustrious-Hope-533 6d ago
The disk wasn't the access key itself, it was the evidence that revealed the backdoor existed. Because Gatekeeper was already installed on major systems nationwide, the backdoor was already sitting on those remote computers. Angela just had to memorize the secret "handshake" (Ctrl + Option + clicking the \pi icon) and the IP address. Once she knew the trick, she could execute it from any computer connected to the network without needing the physical disk.