Cal State Long Beach is one of several universities working with the FBI after fliers displaying anti-Semitic messages were sent to on campus printers.
Associate Vice President of Information Technology Services, Janet Foster, said that ITS received reports of three machines that received documents Friday: two in the Enrollment Services Building and one in the Facilities Management Building.
The command to print was made from an off-campus source, according to a press release sent Friday. It was possible to configure remote computers to print to on-campus machines, according to Foster.
“ … Universities strive to foster an open environment,” Foster said. “And there are certain business functions which require campus printers to receive print jobs originating off campus.”
Foster said ITS suspects the public networks were scanned for open printing ports. Ports act as a key used by computers to send information to printers. Script commands were then coded to send the print jobs through those open ports.
Foster said that no sensitive data was released and no breach of security occurred. However, ITS has reconfigured its network firewalls making remote printing to campus printers no longer possible.
“Although our campus network and system security were not hacked,” Foster said. “this incident exploited the open nature of our university environment by printing hateful and disturbing flyers containing content that is in direct conflict with our university’s values.”
In the press release Friday, President Jane Close Conoley said the fliers have no place on CSULB campus.
“Civil discourse among our many ethnic, racial, religious, and political groups is a top priority of our campus,” Conoley said. “We will not tolerate calls for domination of one group over another. Our campus and our democracy are enriched by the diversity of our community.”
The Associated Press reported that fliers started printing to university printers Thursday and continued Friday. According to AP, Princeton University in New Jersey, Brown University in Rhode Island and the University of Southern California were also affected.
According to The New York Times Monday, computer hacker Andrew Auernheimer, alias “Weev,” claimed responsibility for the act.
An investigation is still ongoing.