Zoom has announced that it will finally roll out end-to-end encryption (E2EE) from next week. Initially, it will be launched as a technical preview where Zoom will ask for feedback from users. This period will last for about 30 days so that any issues can be ironed out.
Once E2EE is launched to the public, users on both the free and paid tiers will be able to host up to 200 participants in an E2EE meeting on Zoom. These meeting rooms will provide increased privacy and security for those who need it.
According to the firm, Zoom’s E2EE uses the same GCM encryption that is in use right now in Zoom meetings, the difference is that with E2EE, the meeting’s host generates encryption keys and uses public-key cryptography to distribute these keys to other participants. This means that Zoom’s servers never see the encryption keys required to decrypt a meeting’s content.
Commenting on the launch of E2EE, Zoom CEO Eric S. Yuan, said:
“End-to-end encryption is another stride toward making Zoom the most secure communications platform in the world. This phase of our E2EE offering provides the same security as existing end-to-end-encrypted messaging platforms, but with the video quality and scale that has made Zoom the communications solution of choice for hundreds of millions of people and the world’s largest enterprises.”
To begin using E2EE when it launches next week, users will need to enable E2EE meetings at the account level and opt-in on a per-meeting basis. It should be noted that not all of Zoom’s features are available in E2EE mode, these include join before host, cloud recording, streaming, live transcription, Breakout Rooms, polling, 1:1 private chat, and meeting reactions. To learn more about E2EE on Zoom, check out the FAQ at the bottom of the announcement.
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