Zoom under probe by NY attorney general

ANKARA

Videoconferencing app Zoom is under investigation by the New York attorney general because of privacy and security deficiencies in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic.

The office of Letitia James' asked Zoom in a letter if the company has taken additional security measures to handle increased traffic on its network, according to The New York Times report Monday.

Zoom is "an essential and valuable communications platform" it said and voiced concerns about the company's "slow" approach to security flaws "that could enable malicious third parties to, among other things, gain surreptitious access to consumer webcams."

The office said it is "concerned that Zoom's existing security practices might not be sufficient to adapt to the recent and sudden surge in both the volume and sensitivity of data being passed through its network."

"While Zoom has remediated specific reported security vulnerabilities, we would like to understand whether Zoom has undertaken a broader review of its security practices," the letter added.

In recent weeks, third parties has been able to hijack meetings, interrupt educational sessions and spread racist messages under the name, Zoombombing, by exploiting the app's screen-sharing feature.

According to Sensor Tower, a mobile app market research firm, Zoom became the most popular free app for iPhones in the U.S. after Americans were required to stay at home amid the virus outbreak, making the app the primary source of communication for companies, public schools and families.

Following concerns and criticism by users, Zoom updated its privacy policy Sunday that was shared Monday by Eric S. Yuan, the company’s CEO and founder on Twitter.

There are nearly 3,200 virus-related deaths with more than 164,600 cases in the U.S.. But almost 6,000 patients have recovered.

The virus known as COVID-19 was first detected in Wuhan, China in December. There are currently more than 803,300 cases worldwide and greater than 39,000 deaths, with nearly 173,000 recoveries, according to the data compiled by Johns Hopkins University in Maryland.

Despite the severity of the virus, most people experience mild symptoms and recover.