Zoom rolls out security update that lets users report meeting participants and lock video calls in an attempt to prevent ‘Zoombombing’
- The features will look to prevent lapses in Zoom’s security
- Specifically ‘Zoombombing’ where uninvited users crash a conference call
- Users can lock conference calls, remove participants, and stop screen-sharing
- New password protections are also now enabled by default
Zoom is attempting to make good on its promise of updating the service’s security with a new feature roll-out that aims to prevent ‘Zoombombing’ and more.
According to Zoom, a video conferencing platform that has exploded in popularity in recent months, it has introduced several new features meant to help correct a string of flaws that have cast doubt on its safety.
Among the new features is the ability to lock meetings and prevent other users from joining, the ability to remove participants in the meeting and greater control over screen sharing.
Zoom is rolling out new features meant to rectify security lapses that have allowed things like ‘Zoombombing’ where uninvited users crash a video chat
The company will also turn on passwords for Zoom conferences by default and allow business users to have an IT administrator set the password strength.
The new features will be especially useful when it comes to preventing what’s known as ‘Zoombombing’ where intruders disrupt Zoom video chats that they haven’t been invited to.
Sometimes those disruptions have included broadcasting porn in video chats or intruders making vulgar or racist comments.
One recent intrusion on a Zoom video conference reported by a public charter school in Washington D.C. included the broadcasting of child porn.
The new features come shortly after the video conferencing platform announced that it will freeze new feature updates for the next 90 days as it attempts to focus its energy on rectifying issues with user security.
‘Over the next 90 days, we are committed to dedicating the resources needed to better identify, address and fix issues proactively,’ wrote Zoom CEO Eric S. Yuan in a blog post.
‘We are also committed to being transparent throughout this process. We want to do what it takes to maintain your trust.’
Zoom has come under scrutiny for several high-profile security flaws as its user base continues to expand across the world. Pictured, Zoom CEO Eric Yuan, seen here at the firm’s IPO in New York last April
In March, Zoom was discovered sharing sensitive data with Facebook, including the time the Zoom app was opened, phone carrier, device specs, location and other analytic data that can be used to target ads.
According to a blog post from the company’s Yuan, Zoom was ‘made aware on Wednesday, March 25, 2020, that the Facebook SDK was collecting device information unnecessary for us to provide our services’ and has subsequently changed the app’s code.
Other flaws discovered in Zoom also compromise the privacy of one’s webcam, allowing hackers to tap into video and audio feeds and another issue that allows hackers to steal passwords on Windows devices.