Zoom adds end-to-end encryption for data
Zoom Video Communications Inc. said it’s rolling out a promised end- to- end encryption feature to secure user meetings and announced a raft of new products, seeking to put safety concerns behind it and maintain the company’s lofty growth.
End- to- end encryption, the strongest data security standard, will be generally available to free and paid users next week on an optional basis, the San Jose, Calif.- based company said Wednesday in a statement. The software maker also unveiled Onzoom, an event platform in which users can host free, paid or fundraising events with an integrated payment system. A public test version of the service began Wednesday for some users.
Zoom, the maker of a video conferencing service, has been among the most prominent corporate beneficiaries of the COVID- 19 pandemic, which has forced millions of people to work and study from home. The software maker reported that quarterly revenue surged 355 per cent to US$ 663.5 million in the period ended in July, the second consecutive period of triple- digit sales growth. The outsized gains have propelled Zoom’s stock more than sevenfold this year, to a market value of more than US$147 billion.
Zoom is the rare business application that also has been adopted by consumers en masse, with more than 300 million daily meeting participants depending on the service to connect with colleagues, communities and loved ones. Yet the platform has faced months of controversy for security and safety lapses. Researchers discovered some instances when Zoom’s calls were routed through servers in mainland China, even though no meeting participant was based there. And trolls began invading calls with profane, pornographic and racist content, in a phenomenon known as Zoombombing that continues to plague the system.
Zoom has touted full encryption and changes to give meeting hosts more control over participants as solutions to these issues.
Even with its popularity among consumers, the company recognizes that most of its future growth will come from businesses, so Zoom is trying to expand in the unified communications market occupied by Ringcentral Inc. The idea is to combine video conferencing, phone calls and text messaging on one platform.
Zoom, which competes with video conferencing services from Microsoft Corp. and Cisco Systems Inc. among others, also announced new tools to help software developers better integrate Zoom into their products. Among the offerings introduced as part of Wednesday’s Zoomtopia conference was Zapps, which are apps that users can access without leaving the Zoom platform.