Join Jack Smith, a 25-year-plus IT veteran, as he takes you on a hilariously chilling journey through the wild world of tech mishaps. Each episode will leave you laughing and maybe crying a little as we navigate the absurdity of everyday tech disasters.In this podcast series we delve into the bizarre and often cringe-worthy world of IT mishaps, glitches, and the horror stories that come with it. With a sarcastic twist we recount the tales of those who somehow manage to create chaos out of the simplest tasks.Striking a balance between relatable frustration and dark humor that gets even the most cringe-inducing stories entertaining and you will find yourself laughing, cringing, and shaking their heads in disbelief as we take a wild ride through the chaotic world of IT, where every glitch is a ghost story waiting to be told.We choose not to have any subscription model nor sponsoring in order to keep our stories accessible for each and everyone. To support us please check our merchandise at shop.ithorrorstories.eu or buy us a coffee at ko-fi.com/ithorrorstories.
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Disclaimer : The content of this podcast is intended for entertainment purposes only and is meant to humorously explore various tech-related situations. Any resemblance to actual events or real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. We ridicule situations, never individuals or groups. Listener discretion is advised, and we encourage everyone to approach technology with a sense of humor and an open mind.
Copyright 2024-2025 Jack Smith - hello at ithorrorstories dot eu - We do not use cookies, but do run some anonymized tracking via Fathom.
Quick links to individual episodes :
- Episode 01 : Our First Datacenter Fire
- Episode 02 : Crashing Helsinki Airport
- Episode 03 : "Fun" With Domain Names
- Episode 04 : IT and Global Politics
- Episode 05 : Paris Rooftops
- Episode 06 : SAP Happens
- Episode 07 : Y2K vs Y2K38 - The Rematch
- Episode 08 : The DevOps Royale With Cheese
- Episode 09 : Coming soon
Episode 1 : Our First Datacenter Fire
What happens when a data center goes up in smoke—literally? In this episode, we sift through the potential ashes of a not-so-great day. Join us as we chat about servers, batteries, paperwork and holidays, and the surprisingly flammable side of computing. It's a smoky mess, and we’re here for it.
Episode 2 : Crashing Helsinki Airport
Join us as we explore the intersection of Nordic tech innovation, modern infrastructure, and the evolving world of DevOps : Finland ! From smart cities to smarter code and crashing airport parking systems with those nasty edge cases in your test scenario.
Episode 3 : "Fun" With Domain Names
We’re unpacking the critical steps behind migrating a domain name — a process that can disrupt everything from search engine indexing and referral traffic to email deliverability and authentication.Together with an industry expert we explore the technical risks, from broken redirects to, yes — forgetting to update your SPF records and wondering why your emails end up in spam (don’t worry, you’re not the first).In the end it’s all about executing that clean, strategic transition that protects your visibility, performance, communications and a good night sleep.
Episode 4 : IT and Global Politics
A pharmaceutical sales team is detained at an international border.On their tablets: standard product brochures that end up in an escalation into allegations of industrial espionage.In this episode, we unpack how a well-intentioned directive to preload sales materials onto devices as per strategic choices made in boardrooms can unravel on tarmacs and in detention rooms.Back home, the IT team is asleep—until the CIO calls in the middle of the night and it’s on IT to contain.
Episode 5 : Paris Rooftops
Installing a 5G antenna on a rooftop in downtown Paris sounds simple enough - until reality sets in.In this episode, we walk thru the saga of a project that required not one, not two, but multiple site visits before the antenna finally worked as expected. Permits, building access, scheduling delays, unexpected power requirements - each visit brought a new twist, each delay a new story.Was it bureaucracy? Weather? Or just the uniquely French way of doing things?Join us on the rooftops of Paris for a tale of project planning, technical hurdles, and cultural aspects that turns a routine install into a mini-series of its own.
Episode 6 : SAP Happens
SAP sits quietly at the heart of most global businesses, running everything from payroll to procurement, logistics to finance. It’s the system nobody brags about, but everybody depends on. And when someone says “just check SAP,” you know you’re in for more than a click or two.In this episode, we explore how SAP became the invisible backbone of enterprise life, why it inspires equal parts respect and frustration, and the strange comfort of knowing it’s always there—whether you want it to be or not. Because in the end, no matter the industry or the project… SAP happens.
Episode 7 : Y2K vs Y2K38 - The Rematch
We revisit the original digital apocalypse — the year 2000 - looking back at what Y2K really was, how an army of COBOL coders saved the world before midnight, and why most people never even noticed.But the clock is ticking again: Y2K38 is coming, and this time it’s 32-bit. Different date, same panic waiting to happen as UNIX time doesn’t heal — it overflows into a negative.
Episode 8 : The DevOps Royale With Cheese
In this episode, we return to Finland, where an international burger chain suddenly found itself cut off from the one thing every fast-food operation needs to function: real-time operational data. A third-party data supplier pulled the plug without warning, leaving kitchens blind, dashboards empty, and the entire workflow stuck on “please wait.”What followed was a truly Nordic-speed DevOps rescue mission — rapid troubleshooting, frantic config changes, un-authorized workarounds, and a race to restore data before the lunch rush turned into a customer revolt.From vendor surprises to emergency pipelines, this episode serves up a full stack of DevOps chaos... with cheese.
Episode 9 : Coming soon
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, but only after aligning cross-functional synergies.Our cloud-native approach to loremizing ipsum ensures end-to-end disruption across scalable verticals.Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore.Most likely because the VPN is down again. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, unless someone finally updates the wiki.
Follow us on your favourite Podcast platform
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Other Links
Disclaimer : The content of this podcast is intended for entertainment purposes only and is meant to humorously explore various tech-related situations. Any resemblance to actual events or real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. We ridicule situations, never individuals or groups. Listener discretion is advised, and we encourage everyone to approach technology with a sense of humor and an open mind.
Copyright 2024-2025 Jack Smith - hello at ithorrorstories dot eu - We do not use cookies, but do run some anonymized tracking via Fathom.
Merchandising and Ko-Fi support :
In order to keep our podcast accessible for all we choose not to have a subscription model. If you want to support us please check out our store (Click here if you are in the EU - Click here if you are in the US), or get us a coffee on Ko-Fi.com.
Following designs are available
Follow us on your favourite Podcast platform
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Other Links
Disclaimer : The content of this podcast is intended for entertainment purposes only and is meant to humorously explore various tech-related situations. Any resemblance to actual events or real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. We ridicule situations, never individuals or groups. Listener discretion is advised, and we encourage everyone to approach technology with a sense of humor and an open mind.
Copyright 2024-2025 Jack Smith - hello at ithorrorstories dot eu - We do not use cookies, but do run some anonymized tracking via Fathom.
Share your story :
Have a Horror Story to share ? Want to be a guest ? You can ! Get in touch using the form below and we will ping you back. Now before you get crack-a-lackin' know that there are some conditionts before we can consider having you on the podcast :
All stories must be able to be anonymized. No super recognizable companies, events, etc.
In order to let bygones be bygones, at least 2 years must have gone by
Do not use this to 'get even' with colleagues and management, we'll know :)
We get a full non-exclusive and perpetual license to use your story in the podcast and other media plus use it any way we see fit for marketing, events, examples, and any way we can
You will not be compensated, but get bragging rights
Follow us on your favourite Podcast platform
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Other Links
Disclaimer : The content of this podcast is intended for entertainment purposes only and is meant to humorously explore various tech-related situations. Any resemblance to actual events or real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. We ridicule situations, never individuals or groups. Listener discretion is advised, and we encourage everyone to approach technology with a sense of humor and an open mind.
Copyright 2024-2025 Jack Smith - hello at ithorrorstories dot eu - We do not use cookies, but do run some anonymized tracking via Fathom.
Newsletter :
Tired of chasing algorithms, hashtags, and “engagement strategies” ?You’re in good company. No reels, no stories, no “smash that like button” - just an old-school mailing list for people who prefer plain text over trending sounds.Subscribe to the IT Horror Stories with Jack Smith newsletter and get your regular dose of tech chaos straight to your inbox.You’ll receive updates on new episodes, special releases, and behind-the-scenes stories — plus sneak peeks at upcoming topics, merch drops, and community highlights.It’s the only newsletter that keeps you laughing while everything’s on fire.Stay updated, stay caffeinated, and remember: you are one of us.Oh, and yes... It’s fully GDPR compliant. We won’t sell your data, trade it for a Star Wars Lego set, or accidentally leave it on a public S3 bucket.
Follow us on your favourite Podcast platform
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Other Links
Disclaimer : The content of this podcast is intended for entertainment purposes only and is meant to humorously explore various tech-related situations. Any resemblance to actual events or real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental. We ridicule situations, never individuals or groups. Listener discretion is advised, and we encourage everyone to approach technology with a sense of humor and an open mind.
Copyright 2024-2025 Jack Smith - hello at ithorrorstories dot eu - We do not use cookies, but do run some anonymized tracking via Fathom.