Zoom app is a threat to the privacy of individuals, warns the MHA

Akshara Bharat.

The Ministry of Home Affairs has issued an advisory warning individuals about the risk to their privacy while using Zoom, the popular video conferencing app. The advisory that was released on March 12, was shared with the media on Thursday, by the ministry.

The advisory consists of a set of guidelines for the safety of private users who “still would like to use Zoom for private purpose”. According to the ministry, the guidelines will prevent unauthorised entry in the conference room and even malicious activity by authorised participants on terminals of the other participants. It would also avoid DOS attacks by restricting users through passwords and access grants.

Here is a list of safeguards issued by the MHA in a two-page long document:

Setting up a new user ID and password for each meeting.
Enabling the Waiting Room feature in order to ensure that a user can enter only when the host conducting the meeting permits him to.
Disabling join before host feature.
Allowing screen sharing by host only.
Disabling “Allow removed participants to re-join” feature.
Restricting file transfer option.
Restricting recording feature.
Ending the meeting and not just leaving it.
“Most of the settings can be done by login into users zoom account at website, or installed application at PC/Laptop/Phone and also during conduct of conference. However certain settings are possible through certain mode/channel only,” the guidelines from the home ministry read.
It should be noted that a few weeks before the government’s aforementioned set of recommendations, the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-in) did issue a warning that Zoom may compromise the privacy of its users.

“Insecure usage of the platform (Zoom) may allow cyber criminals to access sensitive information such as meeting details and conversations,” the cyber security agency said in its advisory asking users to enable features such as Waiting Room and Scheduling Privilege while using the video conferencing platform.

Amidst the lockdown, the use of US based Zoom video communication has seen an exponential rise among the office goers in India, who conduct their work related conferences from home using this app. It is said that the software used in the designing of the application is made in China and some calls were also routed through the servers in China. The Ministry has also specified that the Zoom is not to be used by the government officials at all.