As a favor to her colleague, Dale Hessman, freelance computer analyst Angela Bennett conducts a preliminary analysis of a puzzling "beta" prototype of a new Internet program that peculiarly allows the user access to such highly sensitive databases as the Federal Reserve Board, the IRS, and the Atomic Energy Commission. After Dale is mysteriously killed in a plane crash, Angela travels to Mexico for a long-delayed vacation. She meets Jack Devlin, a charming young businessman who seems to share her outlook on the world. But shortly thereafter, Angela is nearly killed and her keys, passport, and all identification papers are lost. She soon learns that using the Internet, someone has altered every record of her life and given her a new name, identity, and a falsified police record. With little money, no identification and no credibility, Angela must summon the strength and resources to fight the seemingly unbeatable forces determined to silence her.