Pound Ridge meeting disrupted in graphic 'Zoom bombing' incident

I screamed. Everyone thought I saw a mouse.”

Town Clerk Erin Trostle

POUND RIDGE, N.Y. - A hacker disrupted a Pound Ridge Town Board meeting this week with a so-called “Zoom bombing” that displayed graphic sexual images.

The shocking cyber-attack happened toward the end of the meeting, just when the board was about to hold its regular vote on paying the bills.

Folks can participate in Town Board meetings in person or remotely via Zoom. They can also watch them on livestream video.

Both members of the audience and the board on Tuesday, Aug. 5 could see the pornographic videos.

However, it took a second or two for folks in the meeting room to fully realize what was going on because the individual Zoom screens were so small.

No such luck for the online host, who – unfortunately -- got the full view on their monitor as did this reporter -- and presumably others -- watching from home.

“I screamed. Everyone thought I saw a mouse,” recalled a badly shaken-up Town Clerk Erin Trostle.

The meeting was promptly shut down. It couldn’t be resumed that evening because the offensive content was still there, she said.

Trostle told Halston Media that the incident will be reported to the law enforcement.

A similar "Zoom bombing" was reportedly suffered by a different entity in Pound Ridge recently. A representative there, however, was withholding comment until the situation could be discussed with the entire group.

Live streaming municipal meetings and other virtual forums on Zoom became popular during the COVID-19 pandemic. Municipalities have continued the practice as a way of making meetings more accessible for the community.

According to the FBI, disruptors – either working alone or in coordinated group attacks – have wasted no time exploiting the new technology with pornography, hate speech, and threats.

Hacking into a teleconference in New York is illegal and can result in both state and federal charges as it’s considered a form of computer crime.

Unfortunately, identifying and catching the bad guys isn’t an easy task. They may join online using phony names and then change their aliases as they bounce from one meeting to the next, according to legal experts.