Hate-filled messages have popped up across the University of California, Berkeley, leaving students and law enforcement authorities in a tizzy.
A hacker known as Weev sent racist, anti-Semitic and anti-gay fliers to network-connected printers at multiple locations across campus last week.
A chain began with university employees raising the flag on at least seven different printers, some of which spewed fliers emblazoned with swastikas, calling on white men to join the "struggle for white supremacy."
Similar messages were found at 11 other universities across the country.
The notorious hacker has bragged online about masterminding what he dubbed "mass printer trolling." However, The New York Times has reported that Weev says he is not responsible for a second batch of fliers targeting the LGBT community that showed up on Cal printers Monday morning.
The incidents have left some students nervous.
"When you’re part of the LGBT community here on campus, it's extremely important that students feel included and don’t feel discriminated against in any way," said Zach Swager with the Queer Student Union. "I think it would be very important for the university to react soon and take this very seriously."
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University police say that some fliers were likely not discovered and reported until this week because classes were not in session during Spring Break.
Officials say the school’s information security team has already taken steps to block traffic coming from the source of the hateful messages. As a longer term solution, the university is considering upgrades to the campus network.
The incidents are being investigated as hate crimes by campus police as well as the FBI.
