Hackers post anti-Trump message on digital sign in Houston

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Tuesday, May 30, 2017
Hackers post anti-Trump message on Houston sign
We can only show you one of the messages the hackers posted.

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Drivers headed north on Heights Boulevard were getting a dose of politics with their morning commute. That is, until the sign's owner asked ABC13 reporter Jeff Ehling to help.

Someone hacked a construction sign with two anti-Trump messages overnight, but we were only able to show you one of them.

The sign had a vulgar reference to the president and Russian President Vladimir Putin, but it also said to impeach Trump.

The company that owned the hacked sign asked ABC13 for help turning it off.

The sign first started flashing the message some time late Sunday night.

When Eyewitness News called the sign's owner, they directed Jeff Ehling to an access panel that was left unlocked. They walked him through shutting off the sign, fading those messages to black.

The sign was supposed to warn drivers of construction work. The company that rented the sign has not been identified.

RELATED: Hackers tap into California sign to promote Trump for president

A Caltrans sign on the northbound 15 Freeway displaying a pro Donald Trump sign Christmas night, Dec. 25, 2015.
Nikki Worden

Eyewitness News contacted the City of Houston and the Texas Department of Transportation about the sign. It turns out, the digital sign was placed there by a developer who was doing work in the area.

The original message on the sign about the lane closure was unauthorized, according to a Houston public works official. They said the developer never had clearance to block the lane along Heights Boulevard.

Public works said their signs are password protected to keep hackers from getting into their system.

Officials are trying to contact the developer.

Report a typo to the ABC13 staff