One of our top priorities is keeping you online, whether working from a traditional office, your new home office or anywhere in between. While Microsoft offers a plethora of remote collaboration tools, we recognize Zoom is an extremely popular alternative for online meetings and educational institutions.
So, we wanted to take a few minutes to make sure you are using Zoom safely!
- Password: When creating a Zoom meeting the default setting is to require a password. Keep this box checked or anyone can gain access to your meeting!
- Waiting Room: We recommend enabling the waiting room feature in the Advanced Options if you are the host of the meeting. This prevents a user from accessing the meeting until they are admitted by the host and keeps out unwanted guests.
- Updates: Keep Zoom updated to ensure you are utilizing the latest security release. To update, click on your user icon on the top right. From the drop-down menu click “Check for Updates.” If new updates are available, a message will appear: “Update Available.” Click on “Update” to install.
- New Meeting Every Time: A Personal Meeting ID (PMI) is assigned to each Zoom user when an account is created. If someone has your PMI, they will always be able to check if you are hosting a meeting and potentially join uninvited if a password isn’t configured. We recommend creating a new meeting each time and sharing that unique meeting code instead of sharing your PMI.
- More Security: As additional levels of security, the host can also prevent participants from sharing their screen and lock the meeting once all participants have joined.
- Don’t Share: Don’t publicly post a link to your meeting through social media or online.
- Legitimate Site: Make sure you download zoom from the legitimate Zoom website and not a secondary site that could be malware.
- Phishing: Beware of phishing scams asking you to verify your zoom credentials.
- Privacy Issues: According to news reports, Zoom is currently under investigation in New York and is being sued in California for sharing user information, which allows other companies to target users with ads.
- Known Vulnerability: Zoom has resolved a vulnerability that allows cybercriminals to steal your credentials using the Chat feature. You may still be vulnerable if Zoom is not up to date. See Updates above for more info.
As a reminder, Microsoft Teams is an excellent solution for video chats and instant communication. Teams is already integrated into your Office 356 license and offers you the capability to host live meetings for up to 10,000 people at once!
If you would like more information about Teams and other Microsoft solutions for working remotely, just let us know!
