"I don't care who you are, that's funny!"
Posted on 05/07/2008 6:37:20 PM PDT by presidio9
Computer attacks typically don't inflict physical pain on their victims.
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But in a rare example of an attack apparently motivated by malice rather than money, hackers recently bombarded the Epilepsy Foundation's Web site with hundreds of pictures and links to pages with rapidly flashing images.
The breach triggered severe migraines and near-seizure reactions in some site visitors who viewed the images. People with photosensitive epilepsy can get seizures when they're exposed to flickering images, a response also caused by some video games and cartoons.
The attack happened when hackers exploited a security hole in the foundation's publishing software that allowed them to quickly make numerous posts and overwhelm the site's support forums.
Within the hackers' posts were small flashing pictures and links — masquerading as helpful — to pages that exploded with kaleidoscopic images pulsating with different colors.
"They were out to create seizures," said Ken Lowenberg, senior director of Web and print publishing for the foundation.
He said legitimate users are no longer able to post animated images to the support forum or create direct links to other sites, and it is now moderated around the clock. He said the FBI is investigating the breach.
Security experts said the attack highlights the dangers of Web sites giving visitors great freedom to post content to different parts of the site.
In another recent attack, hackers exploited a simple coding vulnerability in Sen. Barack Obama's Web site to redirect users visiting the community blogs section to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's official campaign site.
The hackers who infiltrated the Epilepsy Foundation's site didn't appear to care about profit. The harmful pages didn't appear to try to push down code that would allow the hacker to gain control of the victims' computers, for instance.
"I count this in the same category of teenagers who think it's funny to put a cat in a bag and throw it over a clothesline — they don't realize how cruel it is," said Paul Ferguson, a security researcher at antivirus software maker Trend Micro Inc. "It was an opportunity waiting to happen for some mean-spirited kid."
In a similar attack this year, a piece of malicious code was released that disabled software that reads text aloud from a computer screen for blind and visually impaired people. That attack appeared to have been designed to cripple the computers of people using illegal copies of the software, researchers said.
Ok. I take it back.
But I already feasted on a doughnut this morning!
Within the hackers' posts were small flashing pictures and links — masquerading as helpful — to pages that exploded with kaleidoscopic images pulsating with different colors.
The absurdity of using kaleidoscopic images of pulsating colors as a weapon...
Yep. Cutting edge tech/”entertainment” is to give the high-def cameras to drunks and dopers.
Farnsworth and Baird, et al, spins in their graves (at 1080 RPM).
exploded with kaleidoscopic images pulsating with different colors.
sounds like media player’s “visulations” however you spell it...
lost a dear half-sister to epilepsy, major seisure
in the tub, no one else at home. a sad 1972 winter.
Vengeance is mine sayth the Lord.
I agree there is nothing humorous about this. Just more evil from this world.
The latest fad in TV editing is to show 20 scenes in 30 seconds...
...on a constantly moving Steadicam...I’m surprised people who watch much TV can SLEEP at night.
Our technology is quickly approaching our bodies capacity and capabilities to process it fast enough. For a good number of us out there this is already a serious issue be it audio or visual triggering.
I go for the older TV shows myself when I do watch it. Nick at nite etc are shows I can watch. I'm not Epileptic but I do have sensory triggered seizures where I spasm like someone getting hit with a cattle prod or a bucket of ice water down their back. The hackers joke wasn't funny and could have been deadly to the wrong person seeing it.
Re: “The hackers intention was to cause harm. There’s nothing funny about that.”
And if they are caught, they can be prosecuted. It’s a Federal crime to hack into someone’s computer, especially for the purpose of vandalism.
Someone should tell this to Web advertisers who post flashing or rapidly pulsating images.
20 scenes in 30 seconds? Ha! That’s nothing. Try sitting through so-called previews in the movie theater these days. You get about 300 scenes in 30 seconds alternating between dark and light. I’ve given up going to the theater because it’s so nauseating.
I have often wondered about how directors and editors think a 1 second scene is worthwhile. I really enjoy classic films where the scenes often last over a minute without a camera angle change or a cut.
I’m very sorry for your daughter’s problems. That must be very hard to endure. God bless you.
The internet is a great tool and wonderful way to communicate. But it seems to make people impersonal. I'll hazard to guess that these hackers would not interact in a negative way with an individual that would cause a calamity in their life. (Or I cling to the hope they would not.)
Just for kicks, they would do something of this nature, and not see the results of their actions says a lot. I find nothing amusing in man's inhumanity to man.
"I don't care who you are, that's funny!"
I know what you mean.
The minimum punishment for this type of hacking should be a non-parolable 5 years.
More serious hacking should have a 10 year minimum, esp. if it affects America’s internal security, defense, or emergency response systems.
I wouldn’t mind whacking a few of these bastards myself. They are like the Nazis - they picked on the weak, blind, and ill, the most vulnerable segments of society.
They should be tracked down and jailed for as long as possible.
I agree, the casual cruelty of people who should know better is startling.
“casual cruelty”
Perfectly condensed into two words.
If this is true; it’s really a sick and perverted thing to do.
Have you ever had a seizure? If not; don’t laugh. They are very, very painful.
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