14 DAY TRIAL // The lax security measures applied to electronic road signs is not something new, nor is the fact that they are getting hacked from time to time to display all sorts of messages, most of them meant to crack a smile at least on the driver’s face.
A road sign in Los Angeles, near Bunker Hill, was sentenced to showing something else than what the road administrators had in mind. The message contained profanities, but it was well-intended.
It is not the first time hackers do it
“Read a [‘freaking’ expletive equivalent] book,” was shining big on the road. The suggestion was captured by Daina Beth Solomon, a student at USC Annenberg on Friday evening and posted on Twitter.
In all fairness, this is not too bad of an advice, considering that the Internet has in the case of some individuals reduced communication to emoji talk. This is not a bad thing as long as it is just an alternative and does not take the place of the real thing, otherwise it would be just a very advanced form of cave painting.
In some of the funniest road sign hacks we’ve seen, drivers are alerted of zombies ahead, or that a rogue panda is on a rampage. One of them was intended for Mario, telling him that the Princess was in another castle.
Funny advice hides the danger ahead
However, as amusing as all this may appear, there is real danger behind the prank. The messages on the road signs are intended to give certain warnings to motorists. As such, changing them could lead to serious incidents.
On the other hand, the fact that individuals have access to the panel management functions is quite worrying. Individuals with malicious purposes on their agenda may abuse the system to divert drivers to secondary roads, where they could be robbed.
Graham Cluley reports that the company managing the trailer-based signs has since corrected the message and now it should display the correct communication.
