Watch Dogs: Last month in San Francisco, a digital sign that had been set up on the street to warn drivers of weekend traffic jams was hacked and the warning read, “Turn Back. Godzilla Attack.”
The government issued its own warning to people who installed the signs, saying, “Beware of hacker attacks.” Journalist and security researcher Bryan Krebsrecently reported that cybersecurity concerns are growing after a hacker in Saudi Arabia, calling himself “Sun Hacker,” breached digital road signs across the country from May 31 to June 4. According to the expert, the breaches coincided with the release of the video game “Watch Dogs” on May 27, 2014. The game revolves around “hacking,” focusing on the hijacking of vital infrastructure such as electronic devices and electronic road signs.
Here's how a hoax becomes a national security issue, according to the Center for Internet Security, a nonprofit organization under the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that monitors and issues warnings about national cybersecurity problems.
“Modifications to electronic signs are common and generally display messages intended to entertain drivers, such as ‘watch out! zombies ahead,’” the CIS’s Multi-State Information Sharing and Analysis Center said in a statement. “However, changes to road signs create a public safety issue because instead of directing drivers through road hazards, they often slow or even stop traffic as drivers stop to take pictures when they see the signs.”
It is very easy to hack these signs, especially if someone has physical access to them, Gizmodo in 2009, when it pointed out that many of them use passwords listed in manuals and available online. CIS says the Saudi hacker is probably someone knowledgeable, since he was able to remotely access and hack them. Internet of Things devices are notoriously poorly designed for security, because technicians believe that no one would be interested in hacking without a financial incentive. The Saudi hacker, of course, proved otherwise, after breaking into 11 points over the past week, according to CIS, changing the signs, and posting his exploits on Twitter.
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It should be mentioned here that “Watch Dogs” released last month stars a hacker who wreaks havoc in Chicago. The hero of the game Watch Dogs uses the city’s digital control system to steal data and cash. He uses the city’s cameras as his eyes and its infrastructure as weapons. He overloads junction boxes, causes explosions in the natural gas network and flips traffic lights to trap his enemies. The hacker from Saudi Arabia seems to have been inspired by the game, after he even posted an image of the game on his Twitter feed.
CIS says that “Watch Dogs” is set to encourage other players to hack cities. “CIS believes that it is very likely that a small percentage of Watch Dogs players will experiment with hacking computers and electronic systems outside of the game,” the warning states.
