Gatecrashers Take Advantage of Universities' Online Lectures

Published on 2020/03/29 | Source

Universities have opted for online lectures as the coronavirus epidemic rages on but are sometimes startled by heavy traffic from people other than students who are tuning in.

In some cases this has caused servers to crash, prompting universities to upload lessons to video-sharing websites like YouTube.

One professor of political science at Jeonbuk National University conducted his lecture through Afreeca TV. The class has 50 students, but more than 350 tuned in.

The university warned sternly that it will eject gatecrashers, and only those logged in with their real name only will be able to access online lectures.

An online lecture offered by Kumoh National Institute of Technology in Gumi drew 850 viewers even though only 40 students had signed up for the class.

In other disruptions, a lecture from Kyonggi University on YouTube prompted wags to post nasty comments in the real-time chat window insulting Korea's past and present presidents.

Universities are stumped. Some have given up on video lectures on sharing sites and returned to their own websites, while others are trying to screen people who tune in.

One shy professor at Dongguk University in Gyeongju said, "I will no longer upload my lectures on YouTube". A university in northwestern Seoul, informing students of a new secure Internet link to lectures, warned them not to share it with non-students.