New York and Dublin portal temporarily shut down after 'inappropriate behaviour'

The portal linking Dublin and New York City via livestream has been temporarily shut due to “inappropriate behaviour”.

Less than a week after it opened on Wednesday 8 May, the portal designed to create connections between the two cities has been temporarily paused by officials after a series of shocking incidents from the Irish side went viral.

In one incident, a woman was escorted away by police after grinding on the portal, while other shocking moments have seen Dubliners showing New Yorkers images from the 9/11 terror attacks, as well as pornographic material.

Dublin City Council released a statement on Monday (13 May) evening, where a spokesperson explained that “technical solutions” were being brought in within the next 24 hours to help combat the misuse of the technology.

They said: “We will continue to monitor the situation over the coming days with our partners in New York to ensure that Portals continue to deliver a positive experience for both cities and the world.”

While the statement claimed “the overwhelming majority of interactions are positive”, it said “a very small minority of people” had been seen exhibiting “inappropriate behaviour”.

They continued: “The team at portals.org and partners are still working on improving the software for better stability and to prepare for Portals to expand to more locations on Earth.

“Those works are being done mostly at night and during those hours, the livestream might be paused.”

The Portals Organisation said: “We do not intend to suggest people to interact with Portals in any particular way - our goal is to open a window between far away places and cultures that allows people to interact freely with one another.

“We encourage people to be respectful and from our position as observers, we see that the absolute majority of experiences is on the bright side.”

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