{
  "id": 19805188,
  "title": "BOFH: The best way to stop an idea spreading is a controlled burn",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/13/bofh-the-best-way-to-stop-an-idea-spreading-is-a-controlled-burn-19805188",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-11-13T11:45:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Register",
    "slug": "the-register",
    "url": "https://www.theregister.com/bofh/2026/11/13/bofh-the-best-way-to-stop-an-idea-spreading-is-a-controlled-burn/5309292"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A foolish notion was approaching the ether, and the Boss, with his office door open, found himself in the grip of Mission Control. The PFY (Particularly Funny Youner) and the reporter learned to associate these contemplative moments with the BAG FULL lamp of a commercial vacuum cleaner at a waxing salon; do not open. The Boss, having seen, read, or overheard something, presented an evidently brilliant idea or a fever dream he wanted to discuss. Unfortunately, his whimsical notions often led to poorly considered ideas that the PFY and the reporter were then tasked with handling. When the Boss mentioned AI, it was never followed by a question, as his ideas were as useful as saying Candyman into a mirror five times. The only way out was to stall until the end of the day, after which the Boss would forget his good idea due to an overnight reset. In response to a potential virus, the reporter unplugged a distribution switch and hoped the Boss would forget his idea, which he did. The reporter then hid in a comms room while checking on the Boss's whereabouts, only to find him busy typing a memo. The Boss then set fire to the building, seemingly to stop a dumb idea, but the PFY revealed that it was not all that bad, leaving the reporter curious about the origin of the fire.",
  "summary": "The Boss mentions 'AI security,' triggering an entirely proportionate incident response",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}