Zoom Unveils Version 5 With Updated Security Measures Following Backlash

Zoom Video Communications Inc. ZM on Wednesday unveiled the fifth version of its application that it said comes with "robust security enhancements."

What's Happening With Zoom Version 5

Zoom Version 5, which will be released by the end of this week, is a "key milestone" in the company's 90-day plan to improve security and privacy of users, it said in a blog post.

Some of the updates include support for AES 256-bit GCM encryption and an account administrator's ability to choose which data center regions are used for their meetings.

Zoom said the new version improves on the user experience with an easily accessible security panel.

The "waiting room" feature, which keeps a new participant in a separate chat until approval from a host, will be enabled by default for education customers, according to Zoom. Screen sharing will also default to "host only" for these meetings.

"I am proud to reach this step in our 90-day plan, but this is just the beginning," Zoom CEO Eric Yuan said in a statement. "We will earn our customers' trust and deliver them happiness with our unwavering focus on providing the most secure platform."

Why It Matters

Zoom has come under increased scrutiny as its daily active users skyrocketed from about 10 million to 200 million over a course of three months since the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic emerged.

Security researchers pointed out a string of flaws in Zoom, including the lack of encryption on its platform, illegitimate sharing of data with Facebook Inc. FB, and the ability of hackers to guess meeting IDs and even get root access.

Some users and analysts expressed concerns over some of the meetings being hosted over data centers in China.

The discovery of the flaws followed with regulatory actions, and ban from some of the businesses, including Alphabet Inc. GOOGL GOOG, as reported by Buzzfeed News earlier.

Zoom's latest update seems aimed at tackling some of these concerns directly.