Royalty Free Pixabay ImageShort Answer
Zoom is much safer in 2025 than it was in 2020. The company fixed many big
problems and now responds faster to bugs. Still, new risks keep appearing, so you should
stay alert and keep Zoom updated.
Past Issues
The Zoom application became extremely popular during the Covid pandemic. It allowed schools and businesses to work from home. This explosion of growth was good for the company, but it also led to growing pains. The company had to scale up so quickly that security issues became a major concern.
- Zoombombing: Random people joined and disrupted meetings early in the pandemic. Example: An uninvited person would connect to an online class. They could disrupt a meeting verbally, or by playing loud music. Some even showed porn.
- Password Security: At one point it was easy for a bad actor to purchase lists of compromised Zoom account passwords.
- Encryption confusion: Zoom once advertised “end-to-end encryption” in a way that was misleading — their servers could still access some meeting data.
- Data sharing with apps: The iOS app and connectors once sent analytics to other services or tried to match emails with profiles. Zoom removed the worst of these features after complaints.
- macOS web server bug: An older macOS installer created a hidden web server that could be abused; Zoom later fixed it.
- Regulatory action: The FTC investigated misleading security claims and reached a settlement requiring Zoom to improve and audit itself regularly.
What Zoom has improved
- Faster patches: Zoom now fixes serious bugs much faster than it did around 2020–2021.
- Bug bounty growth: More security researchers report issues to Zoom, and the company rewards them and patches problems.
- Safer default settings: Hosts have tools like waiting rooms, meeting passwords, and share controls to block unwanted guests.
Updating Zoom often is one of the best ways to stay secure. Many attacks rely on old, unpatched software.
Remaining Zoom risks in 2025
- Phishing and fake invites: Attackers send fake Zoom invites that trick people into running remote-access tools. From there they may try to con a person into just about anything.
- Chat and storage risks: Some research has shown ways chat data or local chat storage might be exposed if an attacker gets access to your files or device.
- E2EE authentication issues: Even with end-to-end options, the way devices authenticate can be attacked in clever ways (for example, using voice or media manipulation).
- New software bugs: Like any big app, fresh vulnerabilities show up and must be patched quickly.
Simple steps to protect your meetings
Always install official updates. Updates fix security holes attackers may try to use.
Turn on waiting rooms, require passcodes, and limit screen sharing to the host.
Don’t click unexpected links. Confirm invites with the sender if unsure.
If your meeting needs maximum privacy, enable true end-to-end encryption—but know how it works and how participants verify each other.
Quick recap:
Zoom is considerably safer in 2025 than it was a few years back. We recommend you stay updated, use secure meeting settings, and be careful with links and invites.
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This is a complete list of security related articles on this website.
Several more are planned and will be added over time.
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