On Thursday, a virtual event featuring Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller had to be canceled after a participant hijacked the Zoom videoconference and displayed pornographic material.
The event was organized by the Mid-Size Bank Coalition of America (MBCA), and according to Brent Tjarks, the executive director of MBCA, they were a victim of a teleconference or Zoom hijacking.
Tjarks further added that they are taking steps to prevent similar incidents in the future, as this is the first time something of this nature has occurred during one of their programs.
“We deeply regret this incident,” Tjarks said.
According to Brent Tjarks, executive director of the Mid-Size Bank Coalition of America (MBCA), the cancellation of the virtual event featuring Federal Reserve Governor Christopher Waller was due to a Zoom hijacking incident involving pornographic images.
Tjarks suspects that one of the security switches that mutes viewers may have been set incorrectly, but the details are not yet clear. The decision to cancel the event was made in consultation with the Fed after the intrusion.
During the call, a participant with the screen name “Dan” began displaying graphic images just before the event was to start. The organizer did not mute microphones or video upon joining, and the call had over 220 participants before it was terminated.
Zoom has not yet commented on the incident. The use of Zoom increased significantly during the pandemic, but it faced criticism for privacy and security concerns, including Zoom bombing incidents.
In response, Zoom rolled out major upgrades, including end-to-end encryption for video calls. Fed events typically have high levels of security and are well-coordinated. MBCA has about 100 members, including banks with assets ranging from $10 billion to $100 billion.
