Cyber Incident Victim: Cartoon Network
Date:
Apr 2019
Location:
Brazil
Summary
Cartoon Network suffered a website breach where two Brazilian hackers exploited a vulnerability in its content management platform, replacing official videos across at least 16 regional portals with unauthorized content including Arabic memes, Brazilian hip-hop tracks, and clips of a Brazilian male stripper. The defacement persisted for three days until the parent company disabled affected video players and websites upon discovery, prioritizing audience safety during restoration efforts; while only two regional branches publicly confirmed the incident, user reports indicated impacts across European, Middle Eastern, African, and Latin American audiences.
| CIA Posture | Motives | Tactics, Techniques & Procedures |
|---|---|---|
| Available to members | 1 motive | 2 techniques |
| Threat Actors | Type | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 0 actors | Available to members | Available to members |
Description
On April 25, 2019, two Brazilian hackers compromised at least 16 regional Cartoon Network websites by exploiting a vulnerability in the website management platform used by the network. The attackers replaced original cartoon videos with unauthorized content, including Arabic memes, Brazilian hip-hop songs, slideshows of internet memes, and videos of Ricardo Milos—a Brazilian male stripper turned internet meme. The defacement persisted for three days until April 28, when Turner, Cartoon Network’s parent company, was alerted to the incident. During this period, visitors to affected regional portals encountered the substituted content instead of regular programming. The hackers publicly claimed responsibility for the intrusion, citing their exploitation of the platform’s security flaw to alter video sources, though their identities were not disclosed. Regional sites impacted included those serving the UK, Hungary, Romania, Germany, Russia, Poland, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands, Italy, Turkey, Mexico, Brazil, Africa, and Arabic-speaking regions. Cartoon Network UK and Cartoon Network Russia were the only regional branches to issue formal public acknowledgments of the breach during the incident timeline.
Turner responded by temporarily deactivating entire websites or video players across compromised domains to contain the breach, confirming the action on April 28. A company spokesperson stated that teams prioritized audience safety by disabling services while working to restore functionality, though this resulted in all videos becoming temporarily unavailable—including legitimate content—indicating broader system maintenance. The defaced content was fully removed following Turner’s intervention, but no technical details about the vulnerability or long-term remediation measures were disclosed. The incident disrupted content delivery across multiple regions for several days, though no data theft or additional malicious activity beyond the defacement was reported. Cartoon Network did not specify the exact method of initial detection or whether external parties assisted in identifying the breach, focusing instead on containment and restoration efforts in its public communications.