On Nov. 15, the Central Operation Committee announced that there were several reports that when visiting a specific website including the word “Ewha,” the site is automatically connected to pornographic sites. As many students were confused, the committee immediately contacted Communications for further investigation.

The official from Communications stated that the problematic website was managed by a firm called “Ewha Corporation,” which has no relations with the school. The website had malware planted in the server, causing it to connect to pornographic sites. The cause of the malware is unclear and the official speculates that it might have been due to hacking. However, after Communications contacted the corporation over four times, they found out that the corporation had outsourced their web administration to a professional website management company, so they had to reach out to the management company for further cooperation.

“Although the corporation reported the issue to the management company right away, it was quite difficult at first as the management company could not fully grasp why the school was requesting to contact them regarding such matters and why we were so concerned about this issue,” the official said. “Therefore, we started explaining that the word ‘Ewha’ itself is deeply related to the school and if anyone accidently visits the problematic website and finds pornographic content, the school’s image will be greatly damaged. This was why immediate action was needed— to prevent any misconception regarding the school.”

After the in-depth explanation from Communications, the management company realized the seriousness of the situation and quickly helped to resolve the issue. The website’s operations went back to normal the following day at around 11 a.m. and Communications stated that it was a relief that the companies were so eager to help them.

“It’s great that we were able to solve the issue quickly with the cooperation of the companies,” the official said. “But if there are any more suspicious websites with the word ‘Ewha’ or any school related matters that are inappropriate, please let us know and we’ll immediately seek for resolutions.

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