The popular videotelephony application, Zoom, rose to popularity in the Coronavirus lockdown period. With people trying to conduct conferences and meetings while at home, this application came forward to save the day. But since then, Zoom became the highlight of all popular online controversies. From data theft, to ransomware, hackers started launching there own sets of attacks through the application. Following this incident, the company officials gathered a team to help address these cybersecurity issues.
However, the company is again up to something according to recent reports. The company just announced on its official page, that everyone using older versions of the app will receive a forced update of Zoom 5.0 from May 30, 2020.
Zoom 5.0: A new update or new hack
The new update will be downloaded when you will try to enter a meeting. This is mainly because it will use GCM encryption which will enable it to access your machine’s admin properties. The new update claims to fix all minor bug issues, cybersecurity threats, and other vulnerabilities. But is it okay to access someone’s machine without asking them for permission? Apparently the company is planning to launch the new version from May 30, 2020.
This week’s “Ask Eric Anything” webinar focused on security updates in Zoom 5.0.2 and Zoom’s recent acquisition of Keybase, a startup with deep expertise in encryption and security… [Blog Post] https://t.co/ao28719MKx
— Zoom (@zoom_us) May 14, 2020
They will use the device’s admin properties to override the user authentication and download a forced update for the application. However, there are a few benefits of the new version if you choose to continue to use it. A new encryption shield will appear in the upper left of the Zoom Meeting window which will indicate a secure, encrypted meeting. Among other features, the meeting hosts and co-hosts can report a user in their meeting who is misusing the Zoom platform.
Once updated, the green shield icon will denote enhanced GCM encryption. Clicking the icon also takes the user to the Statistics page for additional encryption details. But the main question is whether the entire forced installation part is ethical or not. Apparently technical teams think this is in the user’s best interest. Let us know what you think about this in the comments section below and we are proud to announce Sciencenews18 is now available on telegram, Do join it quickly!
Suryapratim Ray is an engineer, author, robotics hobbyist, and an active Quoran. Being a technical blogger, he covers the good, bad, and ugly of science on a regular basis at Sciencenews18. In addition to his passion for writing, he’s equally keen on learning classical music.