Illicit video infiltrates school program
AMMON, Idaho (KIFI/KIDK)-The Bonneville School District informed parents Friday that someone infiltrated its "Google Meets" program to display a pornographic video. The district is using the program to compliment its virtual classrooms.
The District said the program is secured from outside individuals unless someone grants access to them.
According to the notice, "in this situation, a student in the class shared the link to the Google Meet with an individual from outside our District. That individual then masked his identity by using the name of another student in the class. Because the screen named appeared to be that of a current student, the teacher likely admitted the individual into the class. The intruder then shared his screen to the class and displayed the pornographic video for about 10 seconds before the teacher was able to end the Meet."
Superintendent Scott Woolstenhume said similar situations have been reported in school districts across the country. "Some districts have stopped the use of virtual meetings completely," he said. "While I am absolutely heartsick over what happened, I do not believe that we need to end Google Meets completely yet."
Teachers have now been instructed not to permit access to outside accounts, even if it appears to be a legitimate request. Other steps have also been implemented.
And, there will also be new additions to the Student Code of Conduct. Those include provisions for suspension or expulsion for students who share information about accessing virtual classrooms with anyone except students enrolled in the class.
Woolstenhume also pointed out that participation in Google Meets is not mandatory and the district will respect parents' rights to keep children safe as they see fit. You can find more information here.l
The District will host a Facebook Live meeting at 8 p.m. Thursday, April 16, to discuss the district's plans for the remainder of the school year. As it stands now, schools have been officially closed until April 20.
