You know some people have asked me. Why do you have 5 servers in your home. The answer because I can. Some others have asked me why do you want another kid, answer because I can(and I want a boy). However I am the first too know just because I can do something does not in fact make it a good idea. Example I figured out how to make a device that would change traffic lights. This could be extremely useful, however it is the worst idea ever to make or use this. You probably could even predict what would happen if I decided to use such a device.
It's also probably illegal. Most jurisdictions have such a law - about tampering with traffic control devices.
Every jurisdiction has laws about that. The fact that U of M released a paper on how they did it, then I managed to reverse engineer it. Emergency vehicles have this device on board. I figured out how to clone it. Its super illegal to use that ability. However it doesn't stop me from having it. I've never used it but I have often wondered what would happen if I did.
EDIT: what would happen traffic wise, not what would happen legally.
As long as it's just you - it won't do much damage. They change the lights, but it's not immediate.
Now, if you had a bunch of them - or a bunch of people have them... That's a different story.
Back when the active traffic management was a new thing and these devices were gaining popularity, we examined what a non-skilled (not that you're not skilled) hack would look like and wrote a few contingency plans and reports for a large municipality. Mostly, they'd just fuck stuff up for a while and people would go about their day.
The true danger lies in if they actually understand traffic. From inside your car, traffic may not look all that complicated. It's actually pretty fucking complex.
Not sure if I'm making sense. I'm kinda shitfaced.
(post is archived)