Question: I have a question about the CIA mission. The team are breaking into CIA HQ to get the NOC list, because Luther can't hack into the computer the list is held on, so Ethan has to physically be in the same room as the computer to get it. But if Luther is able to hack into the CIA's own security system to set off a fake fire alert in one of the areas, then why can't he hack the NOC list computer? It can't be that much harder considering how skilled he is.
Greg Dwyer
7th Sep 2017
Mission: Impossible (1996)
Answer: In the movie they mention it's a "stand alone" computer. Meaning that it has no network access (no internet/intranet/...) and can't be accessed from an other location. Which makes sense for a computer storing such sensitive information. The only way to get the data is to get on that computer physically inside the vault.
Answer: It's not that it's difficult security, it's that there is no outside line connected to that computer. It's impossible to access from anywhere except that room because it's the only room that it has a connection to.
Greg Dwyer