New Zealand HeraldIt’s a Sunday morning: you’ve ventured into the city centre for some breakfast, ready to browse the shops. If you’re in Auckland, New Zealand, you might even see some free porn.
Staff at the Asics store on Shortland Street were stunned when they turned up for work today (September 29) to find pornography playing on their promotional screens.
It was the work of conniving hackers, who uploaded the sexually explicit material to give shoppers and pedestrians a shock (or a treat, depending on who you ask).
Have a look at the video an onlooker shared below:
According to Dwayne Hinagano, a security officer who witnessed the screening, the porn video ran for nearly two hours – continually dropping passing-by residents’ jaws around the sports shop.
As reported by the New Zealand Herald, Hinagano said:
It’s not something anyone who comes to Queen St early on Sunday morning would expect.
The video ran for a long time, maybe two hours from 8:00 until the shop staff arrived at about 10:00. Some people were shocked, but others just stopped and watched.
However, the video may have been playing longer than two hours. Another witness told the New Zealand Herald the pornographic display had been playing since as early as 1.00.
New Zealand HeraldJake Scott, who saw the display at 3.00, told Newshub it ‘made people’s nights’.
Scott added:
People thought it was funny and for the younger generation it kind of is, you know. You go out for a good night and you go to leave the clubs and bang, you see that. I think it made people’s nights.
Tanya Lee, 29, noticed the video when she was on her way to get some breakfast with her seven-year-old son.
Google MapsAs reported by the New Zealand Herald, Lee said:
I took a second look because I just couldn’t believe what I was seeing.
It’s totally inappropriate and offensive, not something that you want kids exposed to and it’s also embarrassing for Auckland as a tourist destination.
Lee added that she expects an apology from Asics, as well as an investigation to ensure this type of explicit incident never happens again.
The porn didn’t cease to play until the store’s staff turned up for work, who turned off the screens when they arrived after seeing the explicit material.
20th Century FoxOne of the staff members told the New Zealand Herald:
Unfortunately we are unable to make any further comments and our manager is not around.
Asics has since published a statement apologising for the explicit incident.
The statement reads:
Our Shortland Street store was subject to a cybersecurity breach. We’re are currently investigating the situation and working to mitigate it happening again in the future. We sincerely apologise to those who saw the content.
Nothing like a Sunday morning stroll to steal a child’s innocence. Pretty funny, though.
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After graduating from Glasgow Caledonian University with an NCTJ and BCTJ-accredited Multimedia Journalism degree, Cameron ventured into the world of print journalism at The National, while also working as a freelance film journalist on the side, becoming an accredited Rotten Tomatoes critic in the process. He’s now left his Scottish homelands and took up residence at UNILAD as a journalist.