'Graphic, Pornographic Material' Displayed During Darien School Board Meeting: District

DARIEN, CT — The morning session of a special meeting of the Darien Board of Education was interrupted on July 22 when "an unknown individual accessed the livestream and posted graphic, pornographic material," according to Darien Public Schools. The school district posted about the incident on its website.

The meeting was stopped and the livestream ended.

"Subsequently, the graphic, pornographic material was removed from the recording," the school district said.

As a result, the morning session of the meeting recording was segmented into two parts and posted online. A third video segment of the afternoon session was posted in its entirety.

Board of Education Chair Jill McCammon said during the public comment portion of the afternoon session that "with the technical issues we were experiencing today, we are only taking public comment from those in the room," but no one came forward to speak.

The school board reported the incident to the Darien Police Department, Sgt. Mauricio Vigil confirmed with Patch.

Vigil said according to the report, "there were multiple individuals who began using foul language and playing pornographic material."

IP addresses of the attendees showed geo-locations outside of the state and some outside of the country, Vigil noted.

Further details were not available as the case is being investigated.

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"Unexpected challenges can sometimes occur during virtual meetings. During the July Board of Education retreat, there was a 'Zoom bombing.' Uninvited individuals entered and caused a disruption with inappropriate content," DPS Interim Superintendent Eric Byrne said in an emailed statement to Patch.

"Security measures are being reviewed and enhanced to prevent future incidents. The goal is to create a safe and respectful virtual environment. Thank you for your understanding and continued participation," Byrne added.

Zoombombing is the hacking of an online meeting in which intrusive, inappropriate or offensive material is displayed. The act has become more prevalent since streaming services like Zoom have increased in popularity since the COVID-19 pandemic.

Recently, a Fairfield Town Plan and Zoning Commission meeting was interrupted by a pair of sexually explicit videos, which prompted a police investigation.

The school district usually encourages those who wish to participate in public comment to join the meeting via Zoom. Those who wish to view only are directed to the YouTube stream.