A cyberattack targeting set-top boxes on Sunday night caused an unanticipated disruption to the television programming of many inhabitants of the United Arab Emirates. The usual content was replaced with information regarding Israeli crimes in Palestine.
A sudden change on European live channels was noticed by impacted service subscribers, who saw a message saying, “We have no choice but to hack to deliver this message to you.” Then the displays changed to an AI news presenter with a broadcast about the state of Palestinian women and children in Israeli jails, complete with images of them in anguish.
A*, a resident of Dubai who uses the well-known HK1RBOXX streaming gadget, described his experience as follows: “At around 10.30 p.m., I was watching BBC News when the program was unexpectedly halted. Instead, horrifying images from Palestine came on my screen. My screen stopped, and I stood there dumbfounded as a message from the hacker appeared in all capitals on a green backdrop. A news bulletin delivered by an AI anchor came just after this. It was eerie and bizarre.”
During a quiz show, JF*, a European lady utilizing the streaming gadget, reported hearing an odd whirring noise before seeing a hacker message on her TV screen. “I was watching a bespectacled AI anchor discussing the atrocities with a ticker showing the number of Palestinians killed and wounded so far before I realized what was going on.” There were kids nearby, and the videos were rather explicit. Not that I wanted them to see it, but we were caught off guard. The material was the same on whatever station we changed to.”
As of Monday at the time of writing, the hacking problem was still open.
The set-top box supplier admitted that their systems had been compromised and apologized in response to frantic communications from worried customers. They gave subscribers their word that they were looking into the issue seriously.
The problem was clarified by Obaidullah Kazmi, the CTO and founder of the cybersecurity firm Credo, located in Dubai. He said that the streaming servers of the illegal IPTV network had been infiltrated. “Due to the inherently insecure nature of such unauthorised services which often lack robust security measures, there is a heightened risk to both the service and its user,” Kazmi said.
He emphasized the hazards involved in accessing unauthorized material providers and cautioned users of such services, warning that this vulnerability may spread to their networks.
It’s uncertain how common pirate satellite dishes and unlicensed decoders are in the United Arab Emirates. Nonetheless, the business faces severe financial consequences from broadcast piracy, which may cost hundreds of millions of dollars. According to reports, the widespread use of illicit decoders and satellite dishes may be costing licensed shops in the UAE’s premium content electronic equipment industry up to 40% of their revenue.
