I am hacker, hear me ‘RAWR' - KPLC 7 News, Lake Charles, Louisiana

I am hacker, hear me ‘RAWR'

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The sign as it appeared early Tuesday evening. The sign as it appeared early Tuesday evening.
The sign as it appeared early Wednesday morning. The sign as it appeared early Wednesday morning.

LOUISVILLE, KY (WAVE) – It happened again Thursday morning, maybe for the last time. An electronic road sign, meant to alert drivers about a shift in traffic patterns approaching construction work on Brownsboro Road near Hite Avenue, was hacked to read "RAWR."

On Tuesday evening, a prankster changed the sign to read, "HONK IF YOURE [sic] HORNY." Officials changed the sign back to its original message, but by Wednesday morning, the sign had been changed again to read, "BEWARE OF ZOMBIES."

Thursday's message was perhaps an acknowledgment by the culprit that he or she has not been identified or caught, although it was not clear whether the same person was responsible for all three incidents. Lindsay English, a spokesperson for Metro Public Works and Assets, would not comment when asked whether the culprit or culprits would be prosecuted if captured.

English said steps were being taken to address the problem, which she called a public safety issue. English said her department was looking at finding a way to make the electronic signs more secure or perhaps removing all of the electronic signs in the Brownsboro Road construction zone altogether and replacing them with more permanent signs.

English said a lock had been added to the sign in question after Wednesday's incident, but the lock was intact after the most recent case. English said all such highway signs are password-protected and can be programmed one of two ways: through a control box on-site or through a laptop computer that's connected to the signs.

 Copyright 2012. WAVE News. All rights reserved.

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