As with most things on the Internet, the popularity of a platform causes an arms race between the hackers and the developers. Zoom.us is no different with the recent releases of three new versions within the last two weeks and with Zoom.us changing the defaults to include more secure settings.

How do you keep up with it all?

First, you want to be sure to be keeping your Zoom desktop client up-to-date. Since it doesn’t require administrator permissions to install you should be able to run an update on the desktop client without issue. The Outlook plugin, however, does need to be updated by an administrator (and it has had its own set of updates too).

But how do you know what’s changed between versions and what setting’s are the new default? That’s where Zoom’s release notes are helpful. However, the settings can also be controlled by the UF administrator. In fact, UFIT has been busy reverting Zoom’s setting changes in order to preserve the current user experience.

Some of the most recent changes that you may have noticed to increase security have been:

• Meeting IDs are no longer displayed in the Zoom meeting’s titlebar.
• The Invite button has been moved into the Participants list (it no longer has its own button).
• Meeting hosts now have a new Security icon that consolidates all the host settings into one place (which includes locking the meeting, changing screen sharing options, and enabling the waiting room (even if it wasn’t choosen when the meeting was scheduled)).

However, at the end of the Spring 2020 term, UFIT is going to change the default settings in order to increase meeting security. What’s being changed?

• Meetings are getting passwords by default.
• Screen sharing will be in Host Only mode by default.

UFIT is continuously evaluating Zoom’s changes and features and will announce any news of importance on the IT News Channel. They are also looking into enhancements to the service to make it more valuable to the UF community. For the summer they are looking at:

• Adding an AI captioning service so that meetings can include live captioning.
• Integration of Zoom into Canvas and Microsoft Teams/Office365.

Other Zoom Articles

• Reminder: Keep Zoom Updated!
• New Zoom Security Feature
• Is your Zoom Meeting Safe?

Knowledgebase

• How do I update the Zoom Client for Meetings?
• What version of the Zoom Client for Meetings am I using?
• How do I keep Zoom meetings secure?
• Are any UF virtual backgrounds available for Zoom or Streams?
• Why is Zoom ‘Locked by Admin’ or limited in some way?
• Where can I find more information about Zoom.us?
• How do I install the Zoom Client for Meetings application?
• How do I log in to the Zoom Client for Meetings?