I love harmless pranks that have a lot of humor, but this prank pulled by these prankers is beyond terrifying. And definitely boycotting this kind of stunt that is aimed to harm others just to get views.
A flight from Tel Aviv to Istanbul was delayed after several passengers reported receiving images of plane crashes on their cell phones. The pictures are believed to have been distributed using Apple AirDrop.
The incident happened shortly before the AnadoluJet passenger plane was readying for takeoff for Istanbul, the Israel Airports Authority (IAA) said.
In the terrifying ordeal, nine pranksters used the iPhone AirDrop to send pictures of aviation disasters to fellow passengers’ phones. According to reports, pictures included a Turkish Airlines plane that crashed in the Netherlands in 2009 and another crash in the US in 2013.
The nine suspects, described by police as Israeli citizens, could be prosecuted for disseminating false information, the IAA said. The offense carries a maximum three-year prison term in Israel.
“The nine … are suspected of broadcasting images of an air disaster on the plane, causing panic and delaying the plane’s departure by several hours,” the police said in a statement.
The Anadolujet Boeing 737 was carrying 160 passengers and bound for Istanbul when the passengers received the images, and the pilot returned to the gate at Ben Gurion Airport.
The incident, on the AndoluJet flight that had been due to take off for Istanbul, was not a cyber-attack over the Internet, said Ofer Lefler, spokesman for the Israel Airports Authority.
More details from AWM:
One passenger on the flight named Diana spoke to Channel 12 about the damage the pranksters caused by sending the alarming images over the iPhone AirDrop feature. She told the news source, “One woman fainted, another had a panic attack.”
Lefler confirmed that the plane eventually took off after the pranksters were dealt with. However, the flight first had to be checked for security threats, and officials scoured the luggage as well as the people on board to ensure that such a problem would not occur again if the plane were to head back out on the tarmac for takeoff.
Lefler confirmed that the pranksters all used the iPhone AirDrop feature to transfer the alarming pictures to other passengers. The feature allows iPhone users to transfer files to one another so long as they are in the same area. The pranksters knew this and decided to abuse the technology in an effort to terrorize the people on the AndoluJet flight.
Passengers later received the option to reboard, and the plane eventually left for Turkey.
Source: AWM
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