Zoom’s latest changes to prevent ‘zoombombing’ arrive on May 9th

Zoom is implementing more of its promised measures to bolster security and prevent “zoombombing” by unwanted guests. To start, it recently gave admins the option of disabling personal meeting IDs for scheduling and starting meetings. An intruder who discovers the ID can’t use it to host a videoconference. On May 9th, basic (aka free) accounts will need to use passwords for all meetings. Waiting rooms and host-only screen sharing will be on by default for these free users, too.

These changes come well into lockdowns for the COVID-19 pandemic, and too late for a host of teachers, businesses and personal users who’ve had to deal with trolls and and pranksters interrupting their video chats. Still, it’s an important step that could reassure those relying on Zoom — not to mention reduce incentives to consider alternatives like Google Meet.