Difference between revisions of "Command code"

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'''Command Codes''' are personal passwords Starfleet Officers use to access ship functions.
'''Command codes''' are personal passwords that [[Starfleet]] officers use to access ship functions.


Command codes generally take the form of several words and numbers spoken by the officer: the words are frequently some combination of numbers and Greek letters. Routine and critical ship functions can be accessed with command codes. The computer recognizes the command code as an order to execute one or more actions in rapid succession, such as initiating a security lockdown and disabling all command functions until another coded command is issued.<ref>[[TNG]] "Rascals"</ref> If spoken by the Captain, command codes allow complete control of the vessel.<ref>TNG "Ship in a Bottle"</ref>


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In [[TOS]] "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield" and ''[[Star Trek III: The Search for Spock]]'', [[James T. Kirk|Captain Kirk]] and the ranking officers use codes to initiate [[self-destruct]]. It is not clear whether these are command codes. However, Kirk has never accessed vital ship systems such as shields or weapons with similar codes, so it is likely they are specific to the auto-destruct system.


In [[TNG]] "Rascals", [[William Riker|Riker]] uses a command code to disable all of the main control systems of the ''Enterprise'' to keep boarders from gaining control of the ship.


Command codes generally take the form of several words and numbers spoken by the officer. The words are usually Greek letters. If spoken by the Captain, this allows complete control of the vessel such as in TNG ''Ship in a Bottle.'' Routine and critical ship functions can be accessed with commmand codes.
In TNG "Gambit", Riker uses his command code in a ruse. Troi remarks that as soon as personnel are missing or captured, their command codes are invalidated. However, command codes can apparently be remotely utilized much in the same fashion as [[prefix code]]s.


In ''The Search for Spock'', Captain Kirk used a code to initiate self destruct. It is not clear whether this was a command code. However, Kirk has never accessed vital ship systems such as shields or weapons with that code, so it is likely the code was specific to the auto-destruct system.
Command codes were deemed insufficient to protect the main computer in ''[[Star Trek: First Contact]]''. Picard ordered Data to encrypt the computer with a custom key to prevent [[Borg]] infiltration.


In TNG ''Gambit'', Riker uses the command code in a ruse. Troi remarks that as soon as personnel are missing or captured, command codes are altered. However, command codes can apparently be remotely utilized much in the same fashion as prefix codes.
==Vulnerabilities==
 
Although command codes are invalidated if an officer is declared missing or captured, there is still a window of opportunity to exploit command codes before the crew realizes the officer is missing. If a Starfleet officer is captured, his command codes may be used to send remote orders to a [[Starfleet]] vessel. The officer's voice may need to be simulated to bypass [[information security|biometric authentication]].
In TNG ''Hero Worship'' Data, Picard and Troi tell Timothy it was impossible for him to cause the ship's destruction when he slammed the console, suggesting Starfleet officers require command codes to use consoles. However, in TNG ''The Neutral Zone'' a civilian used a communications panel without a command code.
 
Command codes were deemed insufficient in ''Star Trek: First Conact'' to protect the Main Computer. Picard ordered Data to encrypt the computer with a custom key to prevent Borg infiltration.


==Vulnerabilities==
The most likely method of attack is to lure the [[Captain]] on an away mission, obtain the command codes to his vessel, and commandeer it. Countermeasures depend highly on the competence of the bridge crew in either overriding the Captain's command codes, if this is possible as with the prefix code, or the Captain himself in not allowing himself to be placed in extreme danger.


If a Starfleet Officer is captured, his command codes may be used to remotely control a Starfleet vessel, assuming the code is not changed. The voice can be simulated to fool the computer. The code itself is weak, prone to dictionary attack.
We see in [[VOY]] "Investigations" that these codes are not necessarily tied to any sort of voice-matching or other user authentication.  Torres used a high-level engineering access code in the presence of unauthorized personnel (namely [[Neelix]]), allowing him subsequently to violate [[information security|personal safeguards]] on another crewman's console.


The most likely method of attack is to lure the Captain on an away mission, obtain the command codes to his vessel, and commandeer it. Countermeasures depend highly on the competence of the bridge crew in either overriding the Captain's command codes, if this is possible as with the prefix code, or the Captain himself in not allowing himself to be placed in extreme danger.
==Related information==
In TNG "Sins of the Father", [[Duras]] says that a traitor on [[Khitomer]] sent "defense access codes" to [[Romulan]] attackers that allowed them to remotely disable the outposts [[shields]].


==See Also==
==See Also==
* [[Prefix code]]


* [[Prefix code]]
==Notes==
<references />


[[Category:ST Starship Other]]
[[Category: Star Trek]]
[[Category: ST Starship Other]]

Latest revision as of 18:26, 5 December 2023

Command codes are personal passwords that Starfleet officers use to access ship functions.

Command codes generally take the form of several words and numbers spoken by the officer: the words are frequently some combination of numbers and Greek letters. Routine and critical ship functions can be accessed with command codes. The computer recognizes the command code as an order to execute one or more actions in rapid succession, such as initiating a security lockdown and disabling all command functions until another coded command is issued.[1] If spoken by the Captain, command codes allow complete control of the vessel.[2]

In TOS "Let That Be Your Last Battlefield" and Star Trek III: The Search for Spock, Captain Kirk and the ranking officers use codes to initiate self-destruct. It is not clear whether these are command codes. However, Kirk has never accessed vital ship systems such as shields or weapons with similar codes, so it is likely they are specific to the auto-destruct system.

In TNG "Rascals", Riker uses a command code to disable all of the main control systems of the Enterprise to keep boarders from gaining control of the ship.

In TNG "Gambit", Riker uses his command code in a ruse. Troi remarks that as soon as personnel are missing or captured, their command codes are invalidated. However, command codes can apparently be remotely utilized much in the same fashion as prefix codes.

Command codes were deemed insufficient to protect the main computer in Star Trek: First Contact. Picard ordered Data to encrypt the computer with a custom key to prevent Borg infiltration.

Vulnerabilities

Although command codes are invalidated if an officer is declared missing or captured, there is still a window of opportunity to exploit command codes before the crew realizes the officer is missing. If a Starfleet officer is captured, his command codes may be used to send remote orders to a Starfleet vessel. The officer's voice may need to be simulated to bypass biometric authentication.

The most likely method of attack is to lure the Captain on an away mission, obtain the command codes to his vessel, and commandeer it. Countermeasures depend highly on the competence of the bridge crew in either overriding the Captain's command codes, if this is possible as with the prefix code, or the Captain himself in not allowing himself to be placed in extreme danger.

We see in VOY "Investigations" that these codes are not necessarily tied to any sort of voice-matching or other user authentication. Torres used a high-level engineering access code in the presence of unauthorized personnel (namely Neelix), allowing him subsequently to violate personal safeguards on another crewman's console.

Related information

In TNG "Sins of the Father", Duras says that a traitor on Khitomer sent "defense access codes" to Romulan attackers that allowed them to remotely disable the outposts shields.

See Also

Notes

  1. TNG "Rascals"
  2. TNG "Ship in a Bottle"