Zoom has agreed to pay $86 million (£61.9 million) to resolve a class action privacy complaint in the United States. Zoom was accused of invading the privacy of millions of users by exchanging personal information with Facebook, Google, and LinkedIn, according to the lawsuit. It also accused Zoom of misrepresenting its end-to-end encryption capabilities and failing to prevent “zoombombing” sessions too.
Also Read: Useful Tips To Secure Your Zoom Room
Company Denied any wrongdoing
Although the company denied any wrongdoing, it has promised to improve its security procedures. The preliminary settlement is still pending approval by US District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, California, and includes a requirement that Zoom will provide its employees with specialized training in data handling and privacy.” The privacy and security of our users are a major priority for Zoom, and we take seriously the trust our users have in us,” a Zoom spokesman stated.
“We’re very proud of the advancements we’ve made to our platform, and also we’re too excited to keep innovating with privacy and security in mind.” Zoom wagers billions on home working, and ‘Zoombombing’ is still going on with a new version of the software. Zoom is getting a lot of attention as its popularity grows. Zoom is getting a lot of attention as its popularity grows. The class-action lawsuit, which was filed in March 2020 in the US District Court for the Northern District of California, is one of several legal issues that the US-based video-conferencing company is dealing with. The complaint was filed on behalf of Zoom Meetings paid customers as well as free users across the United States.
Also Read: How to Record Zoom Meetings without permission from the Host
Plaintiffs Lawyers Claim to US Zoom
The plaintiffs’ lawyers claim that US Zoom users earned $1.3 billion in revenue for the video-conferencing company. Subscribers in the class action would be entitled to 15% refunds on their subscriptions or $25, whichever is more if the proposed settlement is accepted, while others could earn up to $15. The plaintiffs’ lawyers plan to sue Zoom for $21.3 million in legal expenses. In March, the video-conferencing company requested the court to dismiss the motion. Judge Koh, on the other hand, merely dismissed a portion of the complaint involving invasion of privacy and carelessness, allowing the plaintiffs to pursue other contract-related claims.
Also read: Which Is Better Google Meet Or Zoom?
Security issues and zoombombing
The video-conferencing company has long been chastised for its security practices. The phenomenon of “Zoombombing” instances, in which unauthorized individuals disrupt meetings to cause problems, is one major reason why several companies have decided to discontinue utilizing the platform. According to the New York Times, a virtual Chipotle event held during the coronavirus shutdown was disrupted in April of last year when a hacker broke in and exposed p***ography to hundreds of attendees. Zoom has also been chastised for security problems, such as a hole that allowed an attacker to remove guests from meetings, spoof user communications, and take control of shared screens. Another case included Mac users being coerced into calls without their consent. Furthermore, the lawsuit’s plaintiffs claimed that the platform misrepresented its encryption technique, transport encryption, as end-to-end encryption.
Instead of the meeting’s participants being the only ones who can decrypt messages, Zoom can view the video and audio of meetings. However, the BBC knows that Zoom has been working hard to address security and privacy issues through app updates since April 2020, including the addition of end-to-end encryption and more than 100 privacy, safety, and security measures.
As corporations turned to work online as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, the use of video and collaboration services offered by companies like Zoom, Slack, Microsoft, and Google skyrocketed. However, as the site grew in popularity, it was under pressure to address security and privacy concerns.
Trending News: 6 Best Alternatives To Zoom in 2021
Zoom Brings Two Exciting Features To Combat Fatigue During Virtual Meetings
How To Send And Receive Money With Ria Money Transfer?
How To Clean Up Gmail Inbox With This Mass Trick
How to tell if your Facebook is Hacked?