SPOKANE — The FBI and Spokane police are now investigating an incident in which the Gonzaga University Black Student Union was hacked during a Zoom meeting and bombarded with racial and homophobic slurs.
The incident occurred last Sunday during a virtual call among members of the Black Student Union. KXLY-TV reports several people joined the call using offensive screen names and began yelling racial and homophobic slurs and sharing pornography on their screens.
Gonzaga University leaders issued a letter this week saying their technical staff was able to capture data of the Zoom-bombing, identifying IP addresses from the people who hijacked the call. The IP addresses were both domestic and international.
They also noted that other universities around the U.S. have had similar Zoom-bombings.
The university said the Spokane Police Department’s criminal investigation unit and the FBI are now involved in the investigation.
“We are deeply disheartened that we must identify ways to maintain safety and security in virtual meeting experiences, but that is a clear reality,” the letter from university leadership said.
