“...it’s just humongous computer systems holding enormous amounts of data that thousands or tens of thousands of people have access to to varying degrees. In the process by which people are granted access is completely worthless and full of holes.”
I think you’ve got a good point. I’m no hacker but I can work a lot of computer stuff. Back in the early 80’s (pre-Windows) I worked for a large soft drink company. They had a big main-frame accessible via modems to salesmen around the country (world?). Salesman asked me for an array of sales of new product, by size and container (glass plastic). They told him they couldn’t do that. He pressured me and I kept going back between other duties and got it just as you say: it’s a large system, just kept reformulating the question until I got the array he wanted.
LOL, I have to admit, I solve a lot of problems I don’t understand in just that fashion...
We are all monkeys with typewriters. Or keyboards...