WATCH: Drivers commuting into downtown from the sud-ouest had a good laugh as they passed a doctored digital sign on de la Vérendrye boulevard in Lasalle.
MONTREAL – Drivers coming in from the sud-ouest had a good laugh as they passed a doctored digital sign on de la Vérendrye boulevard Monday, but it might not be a laughing matter for the culprit who changed the sign.
A digital roadwork sign, typically used for updates about construction or road closures, was hacked to read “Expect Deez Nuts.”
The cryptic message is either a reference to the now-defunct American snack food company Deez Nuts or a crude allusion to male anatomy.
Nevertheless, altering road signs is illegal – even if it’s a well-intended joke.
According to the Montreal police, somebody caught hacking into these types of signs will be charged with mischief – a broad term to describe damaging or destroying private or public property or making that property “less useful.”
This was the first time police had heard of a case like this.
According to defence attorney Philip Schneider, “mischief” could mean jail time and a criminal record.
The harshest penalty is a conviction and up to two years in jail.
“It doesn’t matter if it’s malicious or not,”said Schneider.
“If they’re doing it as a joke, they’re going to find out at the end of the day if they’re caught and charged that it’s not a joke at all.”
Schneider also pointed out that joke messages can be dangerous.
“If it’s very icy and you take the warning off this sign and someone goes through the area when there’s black ice, they’re not aware and they can have an accident or cause damage to something else,” he said.
Such adjustments to these sorts of digital signs are common in North America and pictures of them often go viral on websites like Reddit and Imgur – mostly because it’s not that hard to break past the security system.
Many cities do not change the default passwords that come with the signs and some cities do not even lock the control boxes.
Montreal police said they will not actively pursue the sud-ouest sign culprit unless they received an official complaint from the borough.
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