Some of you may be aware of the challenges we have experienced with our 2020 Virtual Annual Meeting. The most serious challenge to our meeting has been the “zoombombing.” For those of you who may not be aware of what zoombombing is, it is the unwanted, disruptive intrusion, generally caused by Internet trolls into a video conference call, it is not perpetrated by attendees. This first instance was quickly stopped by the producer of the session. However, last night we experienced two additional instances of zoombombing during our networking sessions. They too were shut.
Consequently, we are taking further action. We have contacted the FBI. We have reminded all attendees of the AIChE meeting code of conduct and our equity, diversity, and inclusion statement and that we categorically will not tolerate such appalling behavior. We have shut down chat, which is typically used by these trolls, and have taken actions to limit access when necessary. Session hosts have been instructed how to shut down the session should bad actors gain access. As a further note to attendees: please do not share links to any Zoom meetings in email or social media as this gives easy access to zoombombers.
We would also like to make clear that the platform access issues encountered on Monday and Tuesday were unrelated to the zoombombing occurring during certain sessions. These issues have been addressed and platform access and functionality has been restored. We will continue to monitor performance with our vendors for the rest of this week.
June Wispelwey, CEO and Executive Director, AIChE