Cisco Security

Anatomy of an Attack

Narrative Strategy

For the first episode in Cisco’s “Anatomy of an Attack” series, we set out to avoid the usual Hollywood clichés and tell the story of how specific malware attacks actually occur in the real world.

We didn’t want to rely on the standard tropes of guys in hoodies breaking into a ‘mainframe’ and cracking passwords. Instead, we wanted to show something much more unsettling; real life, and the simplicity of effective attacks. And while the story is fictionalized, everything that occurs in this film is factually accurate.

Cisco Anatomy of an Attack Episode 1 detail

Cisco Anatomy of an Attack episode 1 still

Launching the series

Episode One

Launching the seriesEpisode OneThis episode is based on several serious attacks that have actually occurred, some of them high-profile news stories, others that were less known but highly damaging to the companies that were attacked.

The film is a cautionary tale, where every step of the attack maps one-to-one with a Cisco Security solution that would have prevented it. The viewer is left with the understanding that attacks this clever and specific are seemingly impossible to defeat without help.

Cisco Anatomy of an Attack episode 2 detail

continuing the series

Episode Two

This dramatic episode breaks down how cyber attacks actually happen, debunking preconceptions about who’s behind them and demonstrating their devastating repercussions.

The cinematic narratives are told in a gritty yet serious storytelling style laden with technical terminology our core audience recognizes and associates with real-world threats. This approach has been key in driving them to re-evaluate their security solution options.