TeamHDP alters the flight information displays at Maiquetía and Porlamar airports with anti-Maduro messages
On July 6, 2021, the electronic flight information displays at Simón Bolívar International Airport in Maiquetía and Santiago Mariño International Airport in Porlamar showed the message “Maduro dictator” along with the acronym “DEA.” The @ThePinguinHDP account, founder of the hacktivist group TeamHDP, claimed responsibility for the incident, stating that it had only modified some data in the system. Airport authorities reported sabotage of their internet network, and SEBIN arrested Bolipuertos employee Humberto Félix Aviño Salazar as an alleged accomplice, while an arrest warrant was issued for Gerardo José Gil Dams.
Impact details
The flight information displays at Maiquetía and Porlamar showed political messages. Reports confirm the integrity of the content, as well as the subsequent arrests, with no reports of data theft or any significant disruption to flight operations.
Classification & severity
- Category
- Information content security
- Subtype
- Unauthorised modification of information
- Confidence
- High
Media coverage and fact-checking confirm the unauthorized alteration of flight information displays at Maiquetía and Porlamar.
Severity assessment
Medium- Functional impact
- Minimal
- Information impact
- Integrity loss
- Affected scope
- Multiple systems
- Critical service
- Potential
- Public confidence
- Moderate
- Recoverability
- Regular
An incident related to the integrity of the content displayed on public screens at two airports has been verified; no flight disruptions or data breaches have been confirmed.
Timeline
The flight information screens at Simón Bolívar Airport in Maiquetía and Santiago Mariño Airport in Porlamar display the message “Maduro dictator” and the acronym “DEA.”
The @ThePinguinHDP account, founder of TeamHDP, claims responsibility for the intervention and describes the procedure used.
Airport authorities report an act of sabotage against their internet network; SEBIN and the DGCIM launch investigations.
SEBIN arrests Bolipuertos employee Humberto Félix Aviño Salazar in Nueva Esparta as an alleged accomplice; an arrest warrant is issued for Gerardo José Gil Dams.