Posted on: August 16, 2024, 09:13h.
Last updated on: August 16, 2024, 10:09h.
Oregon Lottery LED billboards were infiltrated by mysterious furry cat animations in a suspected hack this week, forcing the screens to go dark before normal service could be eventually restored.
The adorable attack affected at least seven billboards across the state, which were designed to display the current Powerball Jackpot prize and not animated kittens, local CBS affiliate KOIN 6 reported.
Images posted on social media showed lottery billboards in Portland displaying a GIF-style animation of two cartoon cats hugging surrounded by love hearts.
Random Cats
Lottery spokesperson Melanie Mesaros said Thursday that not all LED screens were affected and that the cats seemed to appear in random locations. She added that the lottery wasn’t responsible for the fluffy invasion, but it was working with its vendor to “resolve an issue related to the digital display on our billboards.”
It’s unclear who was behind the disruption, which occurred between August 12 and 14, although the cats appear to be the work of a digital artist who uses the social media handle @SH_4RK.
Images uploaded to @SH_4RK’s X timeline by his followers show that the artwork was spotted not just on lottery billboards but on LED screens in states across the US at around the same time. @SH_4RK’s replies to these posts suggest the artist was surprised to see his work displayed on the billboards.
‘Global Issue’
Mesaros confirmed to KOIN 6 that it was a “global issue for the vendor Daktronics, which operates the LED screens.”
The billboards are paid for by the Lottery but owned by Dalles City, Oregon-based company Meadow Outdoor Advertising. Meadow manager Betsy Hege also passed the blame onto Daktronics.
Full digital screens are the responsibility of the owner operator, but the LEDs like this are controlled by the client,” Hege said. “We all work hard to prevent hacks and have protocols should it happen. We will have a good debrief with the Lottery and Daktronics to understand what happened.”
Hege added that Meadow was “saddened that our signs were displaying the furry image.”
KOIN 6 contacted Daktronics to ask whether the disruption was the result of a cyberattack but received no response.
