Transforming pagers or phones into explosive devices, in their view, was probably not possible both in technological or logistical terms. It was the type of scenario that only the most paranoid would think could actually become a reality.
Yet it has now happened. And it has claimed the lives of 37 people , injured thousands more, and has created the possibility of catastrophic organisational disruption.
The ability to communicate across your army or terrorist network has always been fundamental to warfare. And the ability to communicate - and to communicate quickly - is even more important as the geographical scale of war expands.
An organisation needs to be able to trust that its tools of communication are reliable. And it needs to trust that the people they are talking to are real and not fake (or the products of AI - an increasing fear in times of "deep fakes").
Members of an organisation also need to find ways to ensure that they are not being listened to - a constant fear in times when the tools of communication are constantly evolving in their power and complexity.
