The Privacy Vulnerabilities of Zoom Software and Potential Alternatives - Medical Association of the State of Alabama

Over the past month, as more nationwide “Shelter at Home” orders have been issued and more companies have transitioned to telework, the need for online meetings and webinars has skyrocketed. To accommodate this new way of doing business, many have turned to a platform called Zoom. The problem? No one bothered to read the fine print.

For those in the healthcare field, privacy is paramount. Yet, by using Zoom, users are seceding any and all content displayed or vocalized to the company. In Zoom’s own privacy statement, some of the “Customer Content” it collects includes “information you or others upload, provide, or create while using Zoom.”[i] Additionally, Zoom also collects personal information like your name, physical address, email address, phone number, job title, employer.[ii] And, even if you don’t make an account with Zoom, it will collect and keep data on what type of device you are using, and your IP address.[iii]

Now, while Zoom has recently updated its privacy policy and is taking steps to make the platform more secure, there are issues beyond the data mining mentioned above. On Monday, for instance, the Boston office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation issued a warning[iv] saying that it had received multiple reports from Massachusetts schools about trolls hijacking Zoom meetings with displays of pornography, white supremacist imagery and threatening language — malicious attacks known as “zoombombing.”[v]

So, what’s the solution? Below are a few good alternative platforms to use instead Zoom: