Hollywood vs. Reality: What Netflix’s “Zero Day” Gets Wrong About Cyber Threats to 911 and Government Systems

When Netflix dropped the series “Zero Day,” it made headlines for dramatizing a massive cyberattack that shut down energy grids, caused plane crashes, and disrupted life-support systems—all in a matter of minutes.

[Full webinar: Zero Day: TV Myths vs. Reality – Unpacking Cyber Threats to Public Safety and Government]

But could it really happen like that?

As cybersecurity experts working daily with 911 centers, PSAPs, and local government networks, let’s try to separate Hollywood fiction from the very real threats facing public safety systems today.

Short answer: no.

A single zero-day vulnerability—no matter how powerful—can’t simultaneously crash subways, hospitals, airports, and mobile networks. In reality, executing an attack of that scale would require dozens (if not hundreds) of highly coordinated exploits across vastly different systems.

🚫 Myth: A single malware sample (Proteus) can hijack every sector
✅ Reality: Public safety systems use a variety of hardware, operating systems, and segmented networks. Even nation-state attackers struggle to develop a universal payload.

🚫 Myth: Everything goes down—and comes back up—in one minute
✅ Reality: Recovery from real zero-day attacks (like MOVEit or Log4Shell) can take weeks or months. Some PSAPs forced to use pen and paper due to ransomware were down for over 9 days.

🚫 Myth: Government alone handles response
✅ Reality: Real-world mitigation requires public-private coordination—vendors, ISPs, cloud providers, and local government all play critical roles.

The series wasn’t entirely off the mark. There are very real threats you should be aware of:

📱 Smartphones are a growing weak point
Threat actors increasingly target mobile devices used by first responders and municipal employees—often via SMS phishing or AI-generated attacks.

🧑‍💼 Insider threats are real
While most insider threats are unintentional (e.g., falling for phishing emails), malicious insiders with access to PSAP or county networks pose a growing risk. Learn more in our Insider Threat Awareness Training.

🔁 Once attacked, you’re more likely to be attacked again
Research shows organizations hit by a cyberattack are significantly more likely to suffer another within 12 months. Repeat attacks are common in public safety—especially when threat actors know there are limited resources for defense.

Zero-day vulnerabilities are especially dangerous for mission-critical systems because:

• 80% are exploited before vendors issue a patch (Report)
• The average patch release takes 22 days
• Less than 5% of organizations can detect them without external help (CISA Alert) [external]

You can’t prevent zero-days, but you can build resilience:

1. Implement anomaly-based detection (behavioral alerts are key) — Learn how in our Cyber Monitoring Services
2. Patch known vulnerabilities rapidly (reduce your exposure window) — See our CyberBenchmark Risk Assessment
3. Talk to your vendors — ask about their patching processes and timelines
4. Segment your network to contain breaches — See CISA’s Cyber Resiliency Toolkit
5. Build and test a zero-day incident response plan — Learn how to build an incident response plan

And remember: while vulnerability assessments won’t detect zero-days, they do uncover exploitable weaknesses that attackers often chain together with unknown flaws. See our guide to conducting a cybersecurity gap analysis.

If you’re in charge of cybersecurity for a 911 center, PSAP, or local government network, the key takeaway is this:

✅ Don’t let Hollywood shape your cyber strategy
✅ Build defenses based on the real threat landscape
✅ Work with experts who understand public safety systems inside and out

Our team at SecuLore has helped hundreds of PSAPs and local government agencies elevate their cyber posture with:

• 24/7 behavioral-based network monitoring
• Cybersecurity training tailored to public safety
• Incident response plan development and tabletop exercises

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Let’s work together to reduce the impact of the next inevitable vulnerability—before it finds you.