Zoom Security FAQ

Is Zoom safe to use on my home computer or personal phone?

Zoom is very safe to use on your home computer or personal phone. Zoom is certified through the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Privacy Shield. Additionally, Zoom is HIPAA compliant, making it safe to be used for medical communications.

Can hackers compromise my home computer and shut down my ability to connect with the internet when I am connected to a Zoom meeting?

No. Since you are connecting to Zoom through a specific portal, your information is protected through Zoom and anonymized so you cannot be identified.

Regardless of what software you use to communicate virtually, anti-virus software is recommended.

Can malware be downloaded to my computer during a Zoom meeting?

Ensure that you have the latest version of Zoom installed on your computer. Zoom uses a variety of top industry standard tools to ensure privacy and security from unwanted sources. Zoom has also disabled the ability to share files, therefore mitigating the risk of malware being shared (purposefully or accidentally).   

Can the Zoom iPhone app send user data to Facebook, even if the user didn’t have a Facebook account?

No. Zoom no longer allows the information exchange between Zoom, the user and Facebook.

Can my participation in a Zoom meeting on my smartphone or computer give access to personal information in my phone?

Zoom only collects data or information that is directly related to the meeting you are attending. This includes IP address, device type and operating system. This is collected as a resource to provide a better experience for users. Detailed information on Zoom’s Security

While I use Zoom, could malicious third parties gain hidden or unauthorized access to my webcam?

Zoom has put safeguards in place, including heavy encryption, that prevents outside parties from gaining access to your webcam without your knowledge.

How will Zoom bombers or crashers be kept out of official Board and Commission meetings?

By taking a series of safeguards both before and during the meeting, the likelihood of ‘zoom-bombers’ will be drastically reduced. Utilizing tools recommended by Zoom like using a different meeting ID/ password for each meeting, enabling waiting rooms and having a co-host dedicated to keeping the meeting safe.  

Are people randomly scanning meetings and joining them?

In a recent security update, Zoom enabled meeting passwords and auto generated meeting IDs by default. In this update, they also disabled the ability to randomly scan for meetings to join. Zoom has made it much tougher for malicious people to find and enter a meeting uninvited.

What steps are being taken to ensure that Boards and Commissions meetings will be secure?

The City of Albuquerque is recommending all meetings utilize the following:

• Creating a unique meeting ID for each meeting
• Creating a unique password for each individual meeting
• Utilizing a waiting room, giving hosts the ability to send out anyone putting forth malicious behavior
• Disabling screen sharing. Only the host can allow certain people to screen share during the meeting.
• Disable ‘private’ chats – chats from one participant to another.