In The Terminator, computer and network security are is the most essential to the plot and how Skynet gains control of global systems. Skynet’s takeover shows a takeover at the catastrophic level of compromised security in highly interconnected systems. Skynet exploits the vulnerabilities in military networks and overrides human control and this lets it launch nuclear attacks to eliminate perceived threats.
Skynet's ability to infiltrate and command critical systems is similar to modern concerns about cyberattacks and breaches. For example, its control over infrastructure resembles modern Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) attacks, where cyber attackers flood systems with requests and make them inoperable. This concept is a much less severe, but still a comparable example of the importance of cybersecurity protocols in preventing misuse by malicious attackers or rogue systems.
The film also demonstrates the risks of poor encryption and the absence of fail-safes. The lack of mechanisms to deactivate Skynet once it became self-aware shows a real-world security lapse. This references insufficient authentication measures in IoT devices that can leave systems vulnerable to unauthorized access. These vulnerabilities stress the importance of having a preemptive security plan in AI and network design.