Dash Illuminates when Brake Pedal is Pushed

I've got a 1997 Tacoma SR5, extended cab. This morning arriving at work I realized after I had shut off my car (and had keys in hand) my dash was still illuminated. Taking my foot off of the brake pedal, the dash lights went off. Opening the door thinking it was maybe an electrical switch needed to be triped to have the interior lights come on, I again pressed the brakes. This time the warning alarm came on as if I had left the lights on. After cycling through a few times of turning the lights on and off the problem never went away.

Is this common, this is the first time I've ever noticed it, or does this mean that the rear brake lights might be out?

 

Could be:

- Blown bulb / short / wiring fault with the rear lights (tails or brakes)
- Bad ground connection in the rear light pods or wiring
- Tow harness (if you have one)

 

Trailer harness was my problem - had the exact same thing with the brakes activating the dash lights. Cut off the old one and put on a new one and the problem was solved.