Online trolls have been disrupting Zooms with hate and pornography. How can schools keep children safe?
Zoom is one of the most popular videoconferencing tools being used during the COVID-19 pandemic. Teachers nationwide are using it to hold remote classes while schools remain physically closed.
But stories of so-called “Zoombombing” like Armstrong’s highlight some of the security risks that come into play when school districts nationwide are forced to quickly switch instruction to online formats because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Zoombombing is loosely defined as people harassing others, spewing abuse or showing inappropriate content on Zoom, such as racist language or profanity.
Zoombombing reports have prompted some school districts and agencies to ban Zoom, including New York City schools, the largest school district in the country. NASA, SpaceX and the Taiwanese government also stopped using Zoom.