The network around Zoom Communications is getting tighter

The network around Zoom Communications is getting tighter

The United States is the country of choice for class action lawsuits. In our opinion, the law firm has become a lucrative business in many ways. That is not to say that accused companies do not repeatedly keep skewing and thereby violating their customers.

It is no coincidence that the number of claims against Zoom Video Communications is increasing rapidly in the US. Due to the worldwide situation of the coronavirus and the corresponding lockdowns, the number of Zoom users has exploded. This also revealed the flaws, which first surfaced in 2019, under a magnifying glass.

The latest American complainant was Mrs. Lisa Johnston. Her case focuses on active data mining by Zoom. In her view, Zoom uses a deliberate policy to collect as much data as possible about the users and then pass it on.

Zoom Video Communications uses cookies and tracking technology to mine personal information, according to Lisa. If she is right, this is an impressive list of data. According to the ongoing charge, Zoom collects names, usernames, addresses, email addresses, phone numbers, user activity records, and payment and credit card records.

That is quite something. According to the Cyber Security website, hundreds of thousands of confidential data from Zoom users are offered on the Dark Web. Hackers seem to have no problem getting hold of hundreds of thousands of passwords.

It is fair to say that this is not solely due to Zoom, but certainly also to Zoom users fault. Many users use a limited number of passwords for new accounts over and over again. Hackers have stolen an infinite number of those passwords in recent years. They are now using it to break into the users of Zoom Video Communications.

The company is also aware that this is happening. In a recent statement, Zoom states that it is now actively pursuing these hackers and their address files. It has also hired a company to prevent Zoom users from being lured into rogue websites to download malware or give away unnecessary confidential data.

It is, of course, commendable that Zoom Video Communications is now putting so much money and energy into the security of its platform. However, it is and remains a fact that already in June 2019, now almost a year ago, the first doubts became public about the safety of the platform. There were then many hollow promises being made, but Zoom only came into action when there was no other option. That was in March 2020 and therefore much too late!

Anyone who thinks that Zoom had learned his lesson will be disappointed. Last December it was announced that Cisco Systems had started working with Zoom Communications a month earlier. Zoom Communications managed to bypass the security of Cisco's Video Device technology, exposing users of this technology to similar risks to those previously using the Apple Mac. On November 18, Cisco demanded that Zoom take action, and on November 25, 2019, Zoom released a statement that the vulnerabilities had been corrected. Again, the defense was that Zoom attached great importance to making the ease of use as great as possible. And again it seems they are putting their user at high risk.