Terrifying Anti-Riot Vehicle Created To Quash Any Urban Disturbance (boingboing.net)

"Are you an urban police force thinking about how to control your fellow humans?" jokes Cory Doctorow. "Look no farther! Your pals at Bozena have an all-new RIOT system, a crowd-control killdozer for all your protest-suppressing needs!" He's one of several web commentators marveling at the marketing copy for a Slovakian company's new anti-riot machinery, also spotted by Slashdot reader drunkdrone. Some quotes from the BOZENA RIOT SYSTEM site about the device's features:

• Easy attachable bulldozer blade.
• The [6,600 pound] shield comes equipped with launching ports designed for use of guns or other rubber projectiles launchers.
• The trailer is capable of displacing the water/foam or its mixtures (available additives: pepper or painting substances) under the high pressure into the distance of several dozen meters.
• Communication with rioters through the loudspeakers.
• Designed to control riots in streets and urbanized areas...intended predominantly for the special military and police units responsible for the CROWD CONTROL during the violent political/social demonstrations, against football hooligans, etc.

Comments

Hacked in 3, 2, 1

[dwywit]

There's a good chance that this machine's software/interfaces will have....inadequate security. Someone, somewhere, will achieve control over it, and then when it turns on the thin blue line behind it, ostensibly waiting to "clean up" the now-subdued rioters, there will be some outrage from the police department/s who bought it, some swift spin from the manufacturer, and the units will either 1. be withdrawn, or 2. given a firmware upgrade, in which case, see above.

At the very least, someone will be able to jam its communication, rendering it unresponsive.