"Seizure-Triggering Attack Is Stark Example of How Social Media Can Be Weaponized"
Attackers sent GIFs and videos to followers of the Epilepsy Foundation’s Twitter account, showing flashing strobe lights in an attempt to cause those with the condition to have seizures. The attackers sent the GIFs and videos to followers, using the foundation’s Twitter handle and hashtags, during National Epilepsy Awareness Month. Although this activity does not have the traditional characteristics of a cyberattack in that users were not tricked into clicking malicious links or websites, and the Twitter account did not get hacked, such attacks would still be considered cyberattacks. These attacks show that the normal functions of an online platform can be used to execute attacks designed to cause physical harm to targets. This article continues to discuss the seizure triggering attacks performed on Twitter, how the social media platform responded to the attacks and another cyber incident in which a strobe light GIF was sent to a journalist with epilepsy.