Zoom puts an end to the “zoombombing” by paying $ 85 million

 

Video conferencing company Zoom (a mainstay of American life during the coronavirus pandemic) has announced that it will pay $85 million to settle a lawsuit against Zoombombing, which it claimed violated users’ privacy, in part by allowing hackers to interrupt online meetings.

Filed in March 2020, shortly after the pandemic hit the United States, the lawsuit claimed that Zoom shared personal data with third-party internet services and allowed hackers to interrupt online meetings through “Zoombombing”.

Under the settlement, which still requires the approval of a federal judge, Zoom subscribers would be eligible to receive a 15% refund on their primary subscriptions or $ 25 – whichever is greater. Other users could receive a refund of up to $ 15.

The company has also agreed to notify users when others use third-party applications during meetings and to provide training on privacy and data handling to its employees.

Zoom said in a statement. “We are proud of the advancements we have made to our platform and look forward to continuing to innovate by putting privacy and security at the forefront. ”

The settlement requires the approval of U.S. District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, California to be finalized.

 

What’s Zoombombing

 

Zoombombing refers to the unwanted intrusion of haters or trolls into a teleconference. They interrupt university courses, business meetings, seminars, events organized within platforms such as Zoom or Google Meet with the aim of disseminating homophobic, sexist, Islamophobic, negationist messages and sometimes even target certain participants.

Zoombombing episodes really spare no one, religious gatherings, remote cultural events, and even Alcoholics Anonymous online dating. Unexpected interruptions in a virtual meeting have become so frequent that they hardly surprise any more.

 

 

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