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U U ppp l nnn kk
U U p p l ii n n k k
UUU ppp l ii n n k k
p
01010101 01110000 01101100 01101001 01101110 01101011
8""""8
8 8 eeeee eeeee e e e e eeeee eeee e e e eeeee eeeee
8eeee8ee 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8
88 8 8eee8 8e 8 8eee8e 8eee8 8eee8 8e 8eee8e 8e 8e 8 8e
88 8 88 8 88 8 88 8 88 8 88 8 88 88 8 88 88 8 88 "8
88eeeee8 88 8 88 8 88 8 88 8 88 8 88e8 88 8 88 88 8 88ee8
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0 Version
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Version 2.00 (2016-05-21):
- In followup of my main Uplink guide I've modernized this one also. In this
guide the major differences are just vocabulary and grammar issues, and the
flow of the guide. I've added a disclaimer that this is not for banks in real
life.
______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
1.0
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.1 FAQ Info
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Version: 2.00
Last update: 2016-05-21.
Game version: 1.6 (last release).
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.2 Introduction
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This is a FAQ of Qoko, known as TheaN on Gamefaqs messageboards.
My real name is Arno Middelkoop and I'm from the Netherlands. View the
credits section on how to contact me for additional info, questions or
corrections, but refrain from flaming or insulting, because it will not do
anything good. That was my introduction, on to the subject of this FAQ:
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.3 Subject introduction
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In Uplink it is possible to transfer credits from other people in the community
to yourself. However, this is the action in Uplink that comes with the greatest
risk to the availability of your user. Blink, and you could already be facing
a game over. This guide presents the best preparation for a bank hack, how to
get account numbers and what you should actually do during a hack.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.4 Version 2 overhaul
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
In followup of my main Uplink guide I thought it would do justice to one of
my earlier works to be redone as well. Though for this indepth guide not much
changed in terms of content: the core of the information presented is still
true.
The wording and flow changed significantly in correspondence with corrected
spelling and grammar. One important addition is the disclaimer that this is
not for banks in real life; yes, that is actually quite an issue.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.5 Copyright
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This FAQ is created by me: Arno Middelkoop, aka TheaN, nowadays Qoko.
PERSONAL USE
============
Feel free to modify for PERSONAL USE ONLY. This includes, and is pretty much
limited to, saving only sections you need onto your computer, copying/pasting
sections to print out for personal use. Once you are distributing it to sites,
magazines or selling it for profit, even without claiming it's your work, you
are breaking my copyright.
SITES ONLINE
============
You cannot copy this FAQ/Guide to your site without my permission:
- do without permission, and you're plagiarizing.
- do with permission, but change a digit, and you're plagiarizing.
Email me to grant permission on your site. Although I'll keep an eye out for
plagiarizing or changing the format. In most cases, I'll reject the offer,
unless I have proof of a good format.
Linking to any of the allowed three however, is allowed. GameFAQs and Neoseeker
both have connections to other sites, and it would be unfair to not grant them
that connection. I am not aware of any connections to supercheats, but if it's
a connection, once again, don't mail me.
Until now, these sites have permission to post:
www.gamefaqs.com (main host)
www.neoseeker.com (second host)
www.supercheats.com (third host)
ILLEGAL POSTING
===============
These sites got their permission revoked:
www.dlh.net (and connections)
www.cheatbook.de (and connections)
Email me if this FAQ is on one of the revoked sites or another one, but don't
false-positive any direct links.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1.6 Disclaimer: this is NOT for banks in real life!
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yes, this is really a thing. I still get emails, about once a month, of people
asking whether I want to work with them or give them assistance in trying to
hack a bank in real life. Once, and no more:
1) This is NOT a guide for any real life hacks. It is a game.
2) Attempting to hack into a real life bank is a serious crime.
The reason I've never contacted authorities is that I just don't want to get
involved in any way. But lets face it: if you're contacting a game guide writer
for criminal assistance, it's not really smart what you're doing. I might not
actively engage in any activity, authorities should be able to read my emails
if they'd wanted to, and you can get yourself in serious trouble. Also, perhaps
an important point: I have no experience whatsoever with hacking in real life.
Story short: for your own good, please stop contacting me for real life hacks.
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
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2.0 Table of Contents
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===============================================================================
Version 0.0
===============================================================================
Introduction 1.0
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FAQ Info 1.1
Introduction 1.2
Subject Introduction 1.3
Version 2 overhaul 1.4
Copyright 1.5
Disclaimer: this is NOT for banks in real life! 1.6
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Table of Contents 2.0
===============================================================================
Requirements 3.0
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Minimum 3.1
Recommended 3.2
Security 3.3
Optional 3.4
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Preparation 4.0
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Create bank accounts 4.1
Obtaining account numbers 4.2
Save a bounced connection 4.3
Security & user backup 4.4
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Transfer 5.0
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Statement priority 5.1
Transfer & cover up 5.2
Result 5.3
Complete bank drain 5.4
===============================================================================
FAQs 6.0
===============================================================================
Credits 7.0
===============================================================================
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
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3.0 Requirements
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This sections presents the minimal and recommended list for an illegimate
credit transfer, as well as security and optional software. Important
to note here that the minimum and recommended lists are standalone, the
security and optional software are additions. I'd honestly suggest to not
attempt this before you have the recommended requirements.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
3.1 Minimum
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For only $18000 you can actually attempt a transfer, yet, it's quite stressful.
The idea is that you attempt this when you do not yet have access to a
HUD_ConnectionAnalysis and bypassers. The consequences are that you will have
an active trace which is very fast and you need an account on the sender's
bank: you don't have time to disable the proxy on Uplink's Bank.
Name Credits
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Password_Breaker $ 1500
Log_Deleter v4 $ 4000
Proxy_Disable v5 $10000
Trace_Tracker v4 $ 2500
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Total $18000
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3.2 Recommended
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
For $52500 more your job becomes much easier. The addition of bypassers
completely voids the active trace and allows you to cancel the proxy with the
click of a button. Because you are bypassing the proxy you don't need
the Proxy_Disable and because you are bypassing the monitor you don't need the
Trace_Tracker.
Name Credits
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Password_Breaker $ 1500
Log_Deleter v4 $ 4000
HUD_ConnectionAnalysis $20000
Proxy_Bypass v5 $20000
Monitor_Bypass v5 $25000
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Total $70500
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3.3 Security
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These are the two security systems offered in the Hardware section. Nuking your
Gateway or restoring a backup are the only two ways how you can avoid losing a
user indefinitely. Using a nuke is the honest way, hence the suggestion to get
these as well.
Name Money
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Motion_Sensor $10000
Gateway_Nuke $20000
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Total $30000
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3.4 Optional
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You need these if you're planning to hack the bank's admin to obtain accounts,
instead of using the bank related missions. For convenience I've added the v2
of the Voice_Analyser; v2 is useful for missions to come, you might as well
spend the additional 5000 to get it right away.
Name Money
+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+
Decypher v3 $ 8000
Voice_Analyser v2 $10000
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Total $18000
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
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4.0 Preparation
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This section explains the preparation you need to do, besides the requirements
presented above, before you can transfer credits to yourself. This includes
creating own accounts, obtaining account numbers, making a connection and
backing up your user.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.1 Create your own bank accounts
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It's a big convenience to have accounts on the banks you'll be transferring
credits from. The point is simple: this allows you to transfer the money to
the same bank, and this in turn allows you to delete statements with just one
proxy workaround, be it disabled or bypassed.
To create bank accounts, simply directly connect to all seven non-Uplink
banks, press 'Create account' and enter any credentials you see fit, it does
not have to be your username. The accounts will appear in your financial screen
including the account number and bank's IP.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.2 Obtaining account numbers
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The two methods of obtaining bank accounts are accepting random bank related
missions and hacking a bank's admin section. Each have their pros.
Bank related missions
=====================
1) No initial hacking involved, numbers are given in mission descriptions.
2) 'Balance transfer' missions point to an account with $200000+ credits.
Bank's admin section
====================
1) Exhaustive list of all accounts on a bank.
2) Includes passwords.
Measuring the two is relatively simple: if you're looking mainly at getting a
lot of credits through these hacks, using the first method with a 'Trace a
recent balance transfer' mission is best. If it's more for the sport and to
exhaust all banks and all accounts, use the second.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.3 Save a bounced connection
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This is something you've probably already done for doing missions. However, the
reason this part is added is to describe another usefulness for banks with
accounts on them. After creating accounts as described in the first subsection,
you'll notice banks have dotted borders: this is because they have active user
credentials. Active credentials greatly increase active trace time and are
recommended for bouncing.
The sole connection I use in a game is InterNIC > Uplink Internal Service
System > Banks with accounts > Government systems. As this guide focuses on
banks, you can leave the latter. In order to connect to a bank you want to
hack, you can just click the bank in question twice: the first will unbounce
the system, the second will make it the final bounce. These systems are enough
for a sufficient bounce. You can highlight banks on the map for convenience.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
4.4 Security & user backup
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Even the most experienced players can have a hiccup when doing a credit
transfer: because the error margin is so low, misclicking statements, account
credentials, tabs in the account and misplacing the Log_Deleter are all causes
that can actually make you fail the time limit.
In order to not be disavowed if it happens, get the Gateway security and keep
the Motion Sensor running as you're attempting hacks. To avoid mishaps with
that, just backup your user for safety. Go to the Uplink directory/users and
copy 'user'.usr and 'user'.tmp to somewhere else. If you fail, you can just
copy them back and try again.
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
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5.0 Transfer
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Now for the actual transfer. I'll briefly describe why this is such a risky
action in Uplink, what to do for the actual transfer and how to quickly cover
up your tracks, and how the priorities allows you to drain a complete bank in
one connection.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.1 Statement priority
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
As I've mentioned multiple times before, you have only a few seconds after the
transfer. The factor that is so lethal are the transfer statements: because you
are illegally transferring credits to your account, both the sending and
receiving statement are incriminating.
The log, in contrary, should also be deleted but is not the priority. The point
with regard to the log is that the hacker that sends credits is not per se the
receiver of the money, and this has a low priority for the company you hacked
the bank of. 'Make a donation' missions are a good example of this, as you are
not required to delete the statements when you do these missions.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.2 Transfer & cover up
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I'll present the actual transfer and the cover up in a list. Follow it one by
one to perform a succesful hack.
1) Connect to the bank you want to hack using your saved connection.
2) Bypass the monitor and proxy.
3) Access the account you want to transfer from.
4) Check the available balance to transfer at the 'Account info'.
5) Go to 'Transfer money' and fill in all the required info and the balance.
6) Remember to send to your account on the bank you're transferring from.
7) Open the Log_Deleter and maximize its CPU speed.
This marks the point where you're still in the clear: if you do the next step,
the short statement trace will start.
8) Press 'Transfer'.
9) Go back to the account's main page and go to 'Statements'.
10) Delete the uppermost statement.
11) Exit the acccount.
12) Access your own account.
13) Go to 'Statements'.
14) Delete the uppermost (usually single) statement.
This marks the point when you should have made a succesful transfer. The log
deletion that follows should be done, but is only a risk if you fastforward.
15) Disconnect.
16) Connect to InterNIC and delete the logs as you normally would.
This is the complete list for a single transfer.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.3 Result
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you have it, get the Motion Sensor running. If you want, you can briefly
fastforward to see if you were succesful. If the sensor goes red, you failed.
You can either decide to blow up your Gateway and use your stolen credits to
get your upgrades up and running, or restore your user backup.
If you are succesful you don't get anything specific per se. It is an action
that gives you a lot of ranking points, however. If you're not yet in the top
five ranks you will most likely raise at least one rank, so you can expect a
mail from Uplink. The credits actually appear on the bank account and it is
spendable.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
5.4 Complete bank drain
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
There is an interesting opportunity if you consider that the connection log is
not the biggest risk in a credit transfer: you do not have to disconnect from
the bank and delete the log straight away.
In fact, you can stay connected, and if you have all account credentials you
can just continue transferring to your account on that bank until you have
completely drained all accounts. Seven connections later you have drained all
banks.
If you do intend to steal all the available credits in the game, I'd suggest
the following to make bank info missions easier in the future:
1) Note down the month in which you perform the hacks.
2) Clear victim's loans to make all loans 0.
3) Deplete the remaining balance to make all balances 0 or a factor of -300.
The factor -300 comes from the monthly Uplink fees, if the account belongs to
an Uplink agent. If you get a balance mission and 0 is not correct, decrease it
by 300 for each month that has passed. A loan should always be 0.
The reason that this works is that all regular transfers are made before your
user was created. The only mission that can generate new credits is a 'Trace a
recent balance transfer', after which it's simple to drain the newly generated
credits.
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
6.0 FAQs
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Some of these FAQs were asked in emails, others are common questions on message
boards, and a few I've added out of my own accord.
Q: Is this an intended mechanic?
A: Yes. The fact that it works, that the risks are high, and that there is a
seperate news item that states that "credits were illegally transferred"
proves that Introversion intended this to work.
Q: Can this be considered cheating or exploiting?
A: No, as it's an intended mechanic. Whether it's fair, see the next question.
Q: How fair is it to use this?
A: That's a personal opinion. I don't use it to get upgrades that otherwise
require a multitude of missions that I'm unable to accept, but I do use it
in the endgame to raise in rank and drain all banks.
Q: What can I do with the credits?
A: As I previously mentioned, I prefer not to use it for upgrades that I
otherwise would not yet be able to obtain. If you use this example, the
credits themselves are only relevant for your score.
Q: I'm getting caught every time. What's going wrong?
A: Probably a matter of speed or you're not prioritizing correctly. Short
recap: bypass monitor/proxy, access account, transfer money, delete sender
statement and delete receiving statement. For the last two steps you have
ten seconds or so.
Q: Why should I use InterNIC? I always use the Uplink Test Machine.
A: No active trace, mainly. I do not see the logic in using a system that has
an active trace to be used over one that has no traces whatsoever. Also,
InterNIC is a system you regularly connect to for links, so you use it
anyway.
Q: My game has no accounts with lots of credits. What shoud I do?
A: As I don't use it for the credits per se, just hack every bank dry. All
accounts combined should give you a decent buck to buy anything you still
need.
Q: I've drained all accounts ingame. Will they return with credits on it?
A: Uplink fees will be deducted from a balance that doesn't exist, and 'Trace
a recent balance transfer' missions can generate new credits, but that's it
for as far as I'm aware.
Q: Can I use Proxy_Disable instead of bypassers?
A: Yes. In this case you should start the disabler before you access the
account and have a Trace_Tracker running. Once the trace starts, access the
account and follow the transfer list from point three onward. It does not
enable you to drain all accounts though, due to the active trace.
Q: After a fail, how do I restore a save?
A: Copy the two files back to the user directory and overwrite.
Q: Do you fail this?
A: Actually, rarely nowadays. I've done it so many times in the endgame that
I'm used to the swift statement deletion. I do sometimes forget the log.
Looks somewhat ridiculous to get the disavow screen two ingame days later
due to such an unnecessary oversight.
Q: What is harder, this or 'GrandTour'?
A: In terms of consistency, overall speed and fail margin, GrandTour. A
transfer is one very risky hack and can just go wrong if you're sloppy.
GrandTour is fifteen minutes rapid hacking, copying and deleting files and
using consoles. The reason that I've made this into a seperate guide is that
this is not an essential game mechanic but still interesting to attempt.
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
7.0 Credits
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- I thank Introversion for creating the game, and publishing it in Europe.
- I thank GameFAQs for posting.
If there are any questions, improvements, additional info or info I forgot,
get in this list my mailing me at:
[email protected]
Yours truly,
Arno "TheaN" Middelkoop
Copyright 2004-2016 Arno Middelkoop
