The well-known video conferencing platform Zoom previously settled for $85 million in 2021 after it was exposed for misleading users regarding the encryption provided. Presently, the company is proposing to pay an $18 million penalty to the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) to resolve an investigation focused on the same security concerns.
Zoom shared details of this proposal in a regulatory filing …
Zoom’s Misrepresentation of Video Encryption
The controversy traces back to 2020. Zoom asserted that calls made via its platform were secured with end-to-end encryption (E2EE), which would ensure that only the participants could decrypt and access the video streams.
End-to-end encryption provides three main advantages:
- The company itself cannot access the calls conducted on its platform.
- Hackers who breach Zoom’s systems would also be unable to view the video content.
- Government authorities that are authorized by Zoom would similarly be excluded from access.
This level of encryption is why many messaging applications, such as Apple’s iMessage and FaceTime, employ it.
However, it was eventually revealed that Zoom’s claim about E2EE was false. While sessions were encrypted, they were not using E2EE, thus negating the aforementioned protections. This realization surfaced in 2020 when the company acknowledged that its assertion was incorrect.
Company Settled for $85 Million to Compensate Users
A class action lawsuit emerged against the firm for misleading its users, culminating in a settlement of $85 million in 2021.
The company also undertook several enhancements concerning security and privacy in its service as a response, although these did not initially include E2EE. Eventually, Zoom did offer the option for E2EE, but selecting it disables numerous features of the platform.
Zoom Has Now Proposed $18 Million to the SEC
In light of the false claims being uncovered, the SEC initiated an investigation into Zoom, also scrutinizing the company for its misleading statements regarding the usage of the service.
Seeking to resolve this issue, Zoom has put forth an $18 million settlement offer. The SEC has yet to announce whether or not it will accept this proposal.
Photo by Yiyang on Unsplash
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