On Monday, 14 November 2016, the CodeBros joined the invite only ranks of the #Dedsec at their Network Hub in the Maboneng Precinct for the Launch of the latest installment in the Watch Dogs franchise.

Megarom Interactive hosted the launch event at The Living Room in Johannesburg, where many “hackers” (press representatives) attended to get a hands-on experience with Watch Dogs 2, before the Embargo dropped and the game officially became available to the public consumer/gamers.

CodeBros went expecting a lot, and what we got in the end, left us a little paranoid! (That means we were blown away, just by the way…)

Stay Safe Yo!

Along with the red carpet treatment that Megarom Interactive is so good at with the events that they host, the location was ideal, reflecting a similar atmosphere to that of the “Hacker Headquarters” in Watch Dogs 2. We were subjected to intense “hacker training” (Disclaimer: NOT REALLY.) where we were the experts showed us exactly how easy it is to gain access, exploit and control devices around you, just like in the game! It is not fiction guys… it is legitimately happening!

We got H4cK3D^

Thankfully along with the demonstration, we were given tips on how to keep our devices a lot more secure. In a nutshell, keep your devices up to date at all times, whether its a laptop, smartphone or tablet. Remove unused applications and restrict permissions. Do not do very sensitive activities like banking on your phone.

I know I am sounding like a “doomsayer” but I made my phone available as an example, and it did not take them long to hack into my phone giving them access to pretty much all my activities, personal files and passwords that I use to access social media and banking applications. I felt very vulnerable and by them showing us all how easily it can happen, it taught us all a valuable lesson. Stay vigilant with your personal information.

Time-Lapse Masterpiece

After the awesome presentation, we were all given the opportunity to try our luck at a few of the methods that were demonstrated.

Then there was also a very talented artist busy reproducing the cover art for Watch Dogs 2 on a canvass. This one of a kind masterpiece was up for grabs for the first press representative who could successfully pick a level 6 difficulty lock. #jealous

Below is our first event vlog with a time-lapse of the canvass creation, short, snappy and a summary of how epic the evening was. We would love to know what you thought about the video, so please drop a comment below, bro.

The Watch Dogs 2 Launch Event Vlog

Thank you

A massive thank you goes out to Rene Fraser and the team at Megarom Interactive who invited us to attend and for hosting such a brilliant event.