It's possible that she copy-pastes her own signature, but this is evidence in favor of the Cybertruck incident being a hoax.
The Cybertruck letter also lists her as "Sr. Director and Deputy General Counsel". But her LinkedIn page lists "Deputy General Counsel & Director, Infrastructure & CapEx" as a previous title; her current title is listed as "VP, Legal": https://www.linkedin.com/in/dinna-eskin-743a7435/
> It's possible that she copy-pastes her own signature...
I was under the impression that that was standard practice for this sort of letter, lest merely being in this role at a company results in numerous examples of your real signature being given to a ton of random people? I mean, the original there doesn't even look like a "real" signature.
(I agree that the wrong title, though, tells us this is almost certainly fake.)
I agree that the original doesn't look like a scan of pen-and-paper, but it looks real to me in the sense that it looks like a person made it, and it's not just a cursive font. It looks too messy, and some of the letters are too indistinct, for it to likely be a cursive font. It appears consistent with a signature entry pad peripheral, a stylus on a tablet, or similar. I would say that largely rules out a security practice; if that were the motivation, it would make more sense to use a cursive font. As I said, I do think it's possible that she copy-pastes her own signature; but if so, the motive I would expect is reducing effort.
> It's possible that she copy-pastes her own signature
I've been continually using Preview.app's feature to easily insert your signature from a menu using the same signature I scanned in using the camera on my MacBook back when they first added that feature literally 15 years ago. Is this considered weird? I just assumed at this point that other PDF systems had the same feature instead of people actually printing, signing, and scanning.
> But her LinkedIn page lists "Deputy General Counsel & Director, Infrastructure & CapEx" as a previous title; her current title is listed as "VP, Legal
Yeah, it seems very unlikely that a legal VP would send a doc out with an outdated title.
Is there any reason not to believe this is just a hoax? I am immediately skeptical I see reported only on Threads (or FB, IG, Twitter, Bluesky, etc) and not corroborated.
I think the question we should be focusing on is why this is possible in the first place? It’s cute when Apple or Google can kick you out of your phone, but something like a car.. highlights the absurdity of the situation we’re in.
> I think the question we should be focusing on is why this is possible in the first place?
No, that's specious reasoning. OP points out the possibility this is not even real. Do you have any indication that any of this is true? That should be your first step. However, you're somehow arguing that hypotheticals serve as any kind of justification, and a potentially made-up scenario is worth anything.
This isn't real, you can see the UI element for closing the cars builtin media player on the top of the screen in the video. It's just a video playing on the car screen lol.
Your reproduction has a pulsating red background effect on the top 25% of the display in the imgur link.
Is there a reason why it does and the cited video does not?
EDIT:
I reviewed the original video again and noticed it, too, had a similar pulsating red background as the imgur link above had.
Difference being is the cited video's entire display pulsated red verses the imgur reproduction having only the top 25% pulsate. I cannot say whether this is significant or not .
Ok, I apologize, but I’ve seen so many fake posts by social media influencers / celebrities at this point that I have to ask: does anyone have a source / verification that this is actually true?
It’s not necessarily that I don’t believe this would be absolutely the par of the course for Elon, I just would like to see a more credible source than a threads post of the rapper. The cease & desist letter in the threads comments looks like it’s AI generated.
Note that the person who signed it (Dinna Eskin) is on linkedin (I have mutuals), and they've been the VP of legal for 11 months now (Previously Sr Dir of Legal), and this was sent 10 days ago, people like that don't usually make this type of mistake in their correspondence.
It very well could be AI generated. Many legal offices are using LLMs these days.
What's the alternative here? A rapper went to the effort to publish an MV, then figured out how to display a fake disabled message in the vehicle, then faked a C&D, knowing that these actions would give Tesla a very legitimate claim against them?
Ockham's razor is not favorable to the alternative.
A rapper who wanted to promote their video created a fake C&D and corresponding warning video, uploaded the video to Youtube, parked his car on the highway, and played the video on the screen all as a "prank" to promote said video. You could do that all in an afternoon. That doesn't seem that unbelievable, especially considering half the runtime of the linked video is an ad for his music. I mean the guy is already at a buying a Cybertruck and rapping about it level of needing attention. Is stretching the truth for promotion really that big of a step from there?
I'm kind of 50/50 on it being fake. Either Tesla or the rapper is doing something insanely stupid that opens them up to a lot of legal liability, and to be honest, both of those options seem quite plausible.
Too many people would want this to be real. It's probably just publicity for bad music from a wannabe rapper - in which case the marketing is actually much better than the music.
In the video it shows him stopped in the left lane of the freeway as if the engine stopped. If you look online for other stories where a Tesla is shutting down it will ask the user to pull over. The car can still be operated in the mode at least in a limited state.
Yeah, that's what gets me, too. Faking a letter would pretty obviously be a bad move legally-speaking, but people make bad moves sometimes. Faking the remote deactivation of the vehicle on the highway, tho... I mean, how would you even begin to do such a thing, even as a software engineer?
FWIW: As of two years ago[1], owners were not able to remotely disable their own cars. Not finding any indication that that has changed.
especially considering that the C&D letter is from August 1st. If it is real, they've been trying to get ahold of him for sometime. It was probably in the terms of service agreement. If it's real, will be an interesting lawsuit.
When evaluating the truth value of claims like this, consider a few things--
1. "Comply with Cease & Desist To Re-activate" is rather unlikely for anyone to program as a standard error message. It's also in a slightly different font from the previous part of the message. The following part of the message says "Update Failed"
2. The creator of the video (a rap video creator) could easily generate the situation by playing a YouTube video (that he created) on his screen
3. The letter (possibly based on a real cease & desist) has all of the information concerning the deactivation in a single paragraph, which would be easy to insert
Via Certified Mail and Email
RE: CEASE AND DESIST - Unauthorized Use of Tesla Intellectual Property - Cybertruck References in Musical Content
Dear Mr. Huey,
We represent Tesla, Inc. ("Tesla") and are writing to formally address the unauthorized use of Tesla's intellectual property in musical content distributed under your name. Specifically, this concerns your use of the Tesla Cybertruck name and imagery in one or more songs, including but not limited to the track titled:
"Cybertruck"
Our records show that a Tesla Cybertruck associated with VIN 7G2CEHED8RA017384 was previously registered under your name or in your possession. Please be advised that this vehicle has been remotely deactivated due to violations of Tesla's Terms of Use, Including misuse of Tesla's trademarks and brand identifiers in media content that falsely implies endorsement, sponsorship, or affiliation with Tesla.
Tesla retains exclusive rights to its registered trademarks and trade dress, including but not limited to
"Tesla," "Cybertruck," and all associated names, logos, imagery, and designs. Your continued use of these protected marks in music, lyrics, titles, cover art, and promotional materials constitutes unauthorized use and may mislead consumers into believing that Tesla endorses or is affiliated with your work.
Accordingly, we hereby demand that you immediately:
1. Remove or revise all publicly distributed music, videos, and media content that reference "Tesla,"
"Cybertruck," or any derivative thereof;
2. Cease and desist from all future use of Tesla's trademarks,
trade dress, and related terms in any creative commercial, or promotional materials;
3. Provide written confirmation of compliance with the above requests within seven (7) days of the date o letter.
Fallure to comply
monora de co compete per ravit evocation or accen to rasia venice systems can da micer injunctive
This letter is sent without prejudice to any of Tesla's rights, all of which are expressly reserved.
Very truly yours,
Junish
Dinna Eskin, Esq.
Sr. Director and Deputy Ge
Tesla, Inc.
7G2CEHED8RA017384
^^^-- World Manufacturing Identifier (WMI) = 7G2 = Tesla Inc.
^-- Make/Line/Series = C = Cybertruck
^-- Chassis/Cab Type/Restraints = E = Truck with Type 2 manual seatbelts (FR, SR*3) with front airbags, PODS, side inflatable restraints, knee airbags (FR)
^-- Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR) = H = Class H – Greater than 4082 kg. to 4536 kg. (9,001-10,000 lbs.) (Designated for Cybertruck)
^-- Fuel Type = E = Electric
^-- Motor/Drive Unit/Braking System = D = Dual Motor – Standard (Designated for Cybertruck)
^-- Check Digit = 8
^-- Model Year = R = 2024
^-- Plant of Manufacture = A = Austin, TX
^^^^^^-- Sequence Number = 017384
Is the check digit correct per [2]?
Step 1. VIN of 7G2CEHED8RA017384 is mapped to the number 77235854891017384.
Steps 2-3. Position weight factors applied, results summed and the sum divided by 11: (78 + 77 + 26 + 35 + 54 + 83 + 52 + 410 + 99 + 18 + 07 + 16 + 75 + 34 + 83 + 42) / 11 = 36.363636364
Step 4. Assign check digit of "4" from remainder 0.364 (4/11). Check digit should be 4 not 8 therefore the VIN is invalid.
> Fallure to comply monora de co compete per ravit evocation or accen to rasia venice systems can da micer injunctive
This might be some error from OCRing or otherwise trying to extract the content from a frame from the video, but I laughed here when I got to 'monora de co compete per ravit' and I googled it thinking it might be an arcane Latin legal expression
In my defense I am tired and Latin and monora de compete sounds Latiny
I know Latin. That is gibberish, actually just badly OCR'ed English.
Looking at the letter in the video it says: "Failure to comply may result in further legal action, including but not limited to claims for injunctive monetary damage, and permanent revocation of access to Tesla vehicle systems and services."
The screen says UPDATE FAILED RETURN TO DEALER. I don't believe this is possible with Teslas as their OTA updater can do rollbacks on failed updates. You also can't perform an update when the car isn't in Park. Also, Tesla doesn't have dealers their cars can be returned to, so...
Readit News
It's possible that she copy-pastes her own signature, but this is evidence in favor of the Cybertruck incident being a hoax.
The Cybertruck letter also lists her as "Sr. Director and Deputy General Counsel". But her LinkedIn page lists "Deputy General Counsel & Director, Infrastructure & CapEx" as a previous title; her current title is listed as "VP, Legal": https://www.linkedin.com/in/dinna-eskin-743a7435/
I was under the impression that that was standard practice for this sort of letter, lest merely being in this role at a company results in numerous examples of your real signature being given to a ton of random people? I mean, the original there doesn't even look like a "real" signature.
(I agree that the wrong title, though, tells us this is almost certainly fake.)
I've been continually using Preview.app's feature to easily insert your signature from a menu using the same signature I scanned in using the camera on my MacBook back when they first added that feature literally 15 years ago. Is this considered weird? I just assumed at this point that other PDF systems had the same feature instead of people actually printing, signing, and scanning.
https://gizmodo.com/a-viral-cybertruck-hoax-got-so-big-tesla...
Yeah, it seems very unlikely that a legal VP would send a doc out with an outdated title.
Would they really put "comply with cease & desist to reactivate" on the screen?
It's on brand for rappers to do stuff to get publicity though.
Dead Comment
No, that's specious reasoning. OP points out the possibility this is not even real. Do you have any indication that any of this is true? That should be your first step. However, you're somehow arguing that hypotheticals serve as any kind of justification, and a potentially made-up scenario is worth anything.
Also making repossessions easier and safer is nothing to sneeze at.
https://imgur.com/a/aCaZZEP
Is there a reason why it does and the cited video does not?
EDIT:
I reviewed the original video again and noticed it, too, had a similar pulsating red background as the imgur link above had.
Difference being is the cited video's entire display pulsated red verses the imgur reproduction having only the top 25% pulsate. I cannot say whether this is significant or not .
It’s not necessarily that I don’t believe this would be absolutely the par of the course for Elon, I just would like to see a more credible source than a threads post of the rapper. The cease & desist letter in the threads comments looks like it’s AI generated.
What's the alternative here? A rapper went to the effort to publish an MV, then figured out how to display a fake disabled message in the vehicle, then faked a C&D, knowing that these actions would give Tesla a very legitimate claim against them?
Ockham's razor is not favorable to the alternative.
Just upload a video to YouTube, open up on Tesla, enable full-screen, done. Not even any hacking or any tech knowledge required.
Literally anyone can generate and print a letter. Finding the name of the legal counsel is just a LinkedIn search away.
100% fake.
Especially USPS and email thing.
Deleted Comment
If it is fake, it's a good one.
I would bet up to $5k through any trusted intermediary at even odds that this story is false.
Hey anything is possible but there is content that's not just "dude said it happened" too.
FWIW: As of two years ago[1], owners were not able to remotely disable their own cars. Not finding any indication that that has changed.
[1] https://www.reddit.com/r/TeslaModel3/comments/16ebp1t/can_a_...
1% unsure because.. well, I'm sure I Dont need to explain why.
1. "Comply with Cease & Desist To Re-activate" is rather unlikely for anyone to program as a standard error message. It's also in a slightly different font from the previous part of the message. The following part of the message says "Update Failed"
2. The creator of the video (a rap video creator) could easily generate the situation by playing a YouTube video (that he created) on his screen
3. The letter (possibly based on a real cease & desist) has all of the information concerning the deactivation in a single paragraph, which would be easy to insert
Dear Mr. Huey, We represent Tesla, Inc. ("Tesla") and are writing to formally address the unauthorized use of Tesla's intellectual property in musical content distributed under your name. Specifically, this concerns your use of the Tesla Cybertruck name and imagery in one or more songs, including but not limited to the track titled:
"Cybertruck"
Our records show that a Tesla Cybertruck associated with VIN 7G2CEHED8RA017384 was previously registered under your name or in your possession. Please be advised that this vehicle has been remotely deactivated due to violations of Tesla's Terms of Use, Including misuse of Tesla's trademarks and brand identifiers in media content that falsely implies endorsement, sponsorship, or affiliation with Tesla.
Tesla retains exclusive rights to its registered trademarks and trade dress, including but not limited to "Tesla," "Cybertruck," and all associated names, logos, imagery, and designs. Your continued use of these protected marks in music, lyrics, titles, cover art, and promotional materials constitutes unauthorized use and may mislead consumers into believing that Tesla endorses or is affiliated with your work.
Accordingly, we hereby demand that you immediately:
1. Remove or revise all publicly distributed music, videos, and media content that reference "Tesla," "Cybertruck," or any derivative thereof;
2. Cease and desist from all future use of Tesla's trademarks, trade dress, and related terms in any creative commercial, or promotional materials;
3. Provide written confirmation of compliance with the above requests within seven (7) days of the date o letter. Fallure to comply monora de co compete per ravit evocation or accen to rasia venice systems can da micer injunctive
This letter is sent without prejudice to any of Tesla's rights, all of which are expressly reserved.
Very truly yours, Junish Dinna Eskin, Esq. Sr. Director and Deputy Ge Tesla, Inc.
Step 1. VIN of 7G2CEHED8RA017384 is mapped to the number 77235854891017384.
Steps 2-3. Position weight factors applied, results summed and the sum divided by 11: (78 + 77 + 26 + 35 + 54 + 83 + 52 + 410 + 99 + 18 + 07 + 16 + 75 + 34 + 83 + 42) / 11 = 36.363636364
Step 4. Assign check digit of "4" from remainder 0.364 (4/11). Check digit should be 4 not 8 therefore the VIN is invalid.
https://service.tesla.com/en-US/vin-recall-search also reveals no knowledge of 7G2CEHED8RA017384 as a valid VIN.
[1] https://vpic.nhtsa.dot.gov/mid/home/displayfile/9e960dca-5b8...
[2] https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-49/part-565/section-565.1...
This might be some error from OCRing or otherwise trying to extract the content from a frame from the video, but I laughed here when I got to 'monora de co compete per ravit' and I googled it thinking it might be an arcane Latin legal expression
In my defense I am tired and Latin and monora de compete sounds Latiny
Looking at the letter in the video it says: "Failure to comply may result in further legal action, including but not limited to claims for injunctive monetary damage, and permanent revocation of access to Tesla vehicle systems and services."
Deleted Comment
This guy didn't even bother to hire a tow truck to make the story at least somewhat more believable!