On September 29, 2018, John Graham-Cumming of Cloudflare expressed shock over the depiction in NCIS Season 16 Episode 1 where incorrect use of random numbers for encryption led to a nuclear reactor crisis. Despite being a competitor of Glowbeam Technologies, which was portrayed in the episode, Cloudflare clarified that there are significant differences between the two companies. These include: Cloudflare's Lava Lamps not being an "encryption engine", all staff undergoing background checks, multiple sources of randomness used by Cloudflare, and adherence to standard encryption algorithms instead of inventing their own. Following these events, Cloudflare acquired Glowbeam Technologies' assets.