Zoom is rolling out the new Zoom 5.0 update today according to The Verge. Included are some new security features and enhancements focused on fixing some of Zoom’s biggest privacy and security issues. With today’s update, a range of new security features have been added, including new updates to the front-end user experience and backend security with Zoom, adding industry-standard AES 256-bit encryption to secure user’s data in transit.
Zoom has previously identified Zoom 5.0 as a key milestone in the company’s 90-day plan to identify, address, and enhance the security and privacy capabilities of the platform.
“We take a holistic view of our users’ privacy and our platform’s security,” said Oded Gal, CPO of Zoom. “From our network to our feature set to our user experience, everything is being put through rigorous scrutiny. On the back end, AES 256-bit GCM encryption will raise the bar for securing our users’ data in transit. On the front end, I’m most excited about the Security icon in the meeting menu bar. This takes our security features, existing and new, and puts them front and center for our meeting hosts. With millions of new users, this will make sure they have instant access to important security controls in their meetings.”
Today’s update comes on top of last week’s security update that added routing capabilities to allow users to stop routing traffic to servers in China. Zoom has said publicly that they are working proactively to address some of its biggest privacy and security concerns and today’s security update appears to back that up including several new features that will minimize the possibility of Zoombombing. Starting today, meeting passwords are enabled by default and the security icon has new features to quickly lock meetings, enable a waiting room, remove participants, and restrict screen sharing and chatting during any meeting.
Zoom has a complete list of updates and progress on Zoom’s 90-day security plan on its blog.
