Who Is Responsible for Zero Day and Who Is Involved?
With the cyberattack classified as an act of terrorism, foreign powers, particularly Russia, become suspects. In the series’ political landscape, it is common for characters to believe that external enemies are trying to harm them. However, as George delves deeper into the investigation, he discovers that a radical left-wing organization is connected to the attack, which turns out to be an act of domestic terrorism. The organization is just the tip of the iceberg. In reality, its hackers were hired by powerful individuals to modify technology developed by the National Security Agency (NSA).
Tech billionaire Monica Kidder (Gaby Hoffmann) was involved in the attack and was responsible for spreading malware through automatic updates of her app, which had been downloaded on “80% of phones in America.” This allowed the malware to spread to any phone it came into contact with via USB, Bluetooth, and other connections, infiltrating various technological systems. Additionally, billionaire Robert Lyndon (Clark Gregg) also played a role in the plan, although he mostly operated from the shadows. Lyndon fed false information to Roger Carlson (Jesse Plemons), George Mullen’s assistant, to mislead the Zero Day Commission, blaming Russia, for example. He also bought oil from the Russians and sold it short days before the cyberattack, making a fortune.
However, the main culprits behind the cyberattack are members of the U.S. Congress. They planned and executed the attack, believing it would unite the country under a common cause. Americans were deeply divided, and Congress was at a standstill, having failed to pass a single piece of legislation in 18 months. As a result, House Speaker Richard Dreyer gathered several congress members to find a solution, including George Mullen’s daughter, Congresswoman Alexandra Mullen. She believed they were acting in the country’s best interest and did not know there would be casualties.
In episode six, George presents the Zero Day Commission’s investigative report during a political session. Beforehand, President Mitchell advises him to place all the blame on Monica Kidder, who died in her cell (more on that later), thus saving his daughter and preserving the public’s faith in the system. George agrees to do so and omits the involvement of politicians in the report. However, during the session, he decides to reveal the whole truth by reading aloud a letter from his daughter confessing everything. In addition to exposing his daughter and Dreyer, he also names other politicians involved in the attack: Representative Jerry Benson, Representative Barbara Rollins, Senator Max Trillin, and Senator Pat Bishop.
The Deaths of Monica Kidder and Roger Carlson
Roger Carlson, George Mullen’s right-hand man, received information from Lyndon that could link political commentator Evan Green (Dan Stevens) to the radical left-wing organization. Lyndon wanted the TV personality out of the way since Green had already spoken about Lyndon on his show. In the end, the strategy failed, even though Green was arrested and tortured by the Zero Day Commission—before being released. As a result, Lyndon tried to persuade Roger to leak information about George’s unstable mental health to the public, aiming to remove the former president from leading the Commission and replace him with Dreyer. This would allow the conspirators to resolve all their problems, but Roger refused to betray his boss. Lyndon then sent men to Roger’s apartment to drug him and drown him in the bathtub, staging it as a suicide.
As for Monica Kidder, Dreyer recruited her because her company’s apps, Panoply, were crucial to the cyberattack’s success. Her involvement was exposed by the media after her arrest by the Zero Day Commission, and shortly afterward, she was found dead in her cell. Although it appeared to be a suicide, her death may have been a way for the conspirators to silence her before she could reveal everything.
