Zoom's latest update aims to stop Zoombombing, improve encryption, security controls

Zoom has announced that the Zoom v5.0 update has robust security enhancements. The update arrives amid security and privacy concerns surrounding the video conferencing platform. Among other features, Zoom has highlighted the introduction of the AES-256 GCM encryption standard, which deploys a more secure cipher for data in transit compared to erstwhile AES-256 ECB. “We will earn our customers’ trust and deliver them happiness with our unwavering focus on providing the most secure platform,” said Eric Yuan, CEO of Zoom. [caption id=“attachment_8292391” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”]  Zoom has updated the app to version 5.0. Image: Zoom blog.[/caption] The new update will let individuals opt for which data centre they want to use for Zoom services, putting to rest concerns over surveillance of calls by China. Zoom had earlier admitted that it routed some calls through China. **The company issued an apology** , explaining as to why the calls were directed to the company’s Chinese servers. Zoom said that owing to spike in the number of users, it had to increase its server capacity, in the process of which it “mistakenly” routed some calls from North America through Chinese servers. The company has also added a new security icon on the meeting menu, combining multiple important security features such as removing rogue participants, restricting who can share screen and locking meetings. The new update will allow only meeting hosts to share their screen in the education space. It will prevent general users from renaming their accounts after joining a call to protect integrity of identity. Zoom has decided to turn on a ‘waiting room’ feature so that hosts can vet participants before allowing them into a meeting. The waiting room feature will be on by default. Passwords for meeting links will also be turned on by default so that IT admins can set password guidelines for users.