March 7, 2023
On Thursday, a Zoom call with the Federal Reserve was abruptly terminated after someone joined shortly before the call began and showed everyone porn.
Because graphic images from a call participant named “Dan” began to appear on the screen, Fed Governor Christopher Waller was unable to deliver his opening remarks.
According to a Reuters reporter who was present, a few minutes before the event began, one participant using the screen name “Dan” began displaying graphic, pornographic images. When the organizer arrived, the microphones and video were not muted.
“We were a victim of a teleconference or Zoom hijacking and we are trying to understand what we need to do going forward to prevent this from ever happening again,” meeting host Brent Tjarks, executive director of the Mid-Size Bank Coalition of America (MBCA), said. “It is an incident we deeply regret.”
He stated that he believes one of the security switches that mutes those watching an event was incorrectly set, but he was unsure of the specifics. Following the intrusion, the decision to cancel was made in consultation with the Fed.
The MBCA, whose roughly 100 members include banks with assets ranging from $10 billion to $100 billion, cancelled the event minutes before it was scheduled to begin, citing “technical difficulties.” Waller was scheduled to speak on inflation and the economic outlook through 2023, as well as take questions from members of the MBCA.
The sources for this piece include an article in PCmag.
