Hackers Use AI-Generated Billionaire Voices to Prank Pedestrians at West Coast Crosswalks

In several West Coast cities including Seattle and parts of Silicon Valley, hackers compromised crosswalk speakers to play AI-generated parodies mimicking tech billionaires like Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg, and Elon Musk, delivering satirical and anti-billionaire messages. This protest highlighted vulnerabilities in public infrastructure, as experts explained these crosswalk devices are easily accessible via default passwords and simple wireless app connections. While the prank amused some pedestrians, it also raised concerns about the broader risks of poorly secured urban tech and the increasing abilities of AI voice cloning. City officials responded by pledging to strengthen security, while commentators noted the lack of current regulations around AI-generated voice technology.

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