The Taiwanese government has asked all its agencies to avoid using Zoom due to a number of security and privacy concerns. Amid coronavirus lockdowns, Zoom and other teleconferencing apps have seen a surge in usage, as schools, hospitals, and even government and private offices use them for virtual meetings. However, the company has faced severe backlash after reports of traffic being routed through China, Zoombombing, a lack of proper security measures, and other privacy concerns.
Zoom prohibition
The Taiwanese government has suggested that alternative apps from competitors like Microsoft and Google are safe and can be used for meetings. Since China does not recognize Taiwan as an independent state, official data transmitted by China is considered a threat to the nation's privacy. A statement issued by Taiwan's Department of Cyber Security says: "If the organization is going to use non-domestic software for international trade or other special situation, many global and communications giants, such as Google and Microsoft, offer this technology. for free amid the current pandemic." "Organizations should consider these options after evaluating the associated data security risks," he added. Zoom, which saw its user base balloon to 200 million in March, was struggling to control peak usage. The company acknowledged that it had mistakenly routed data through Chinese servers and said it had stopped using backup servers for non-Chinese customers. Similarly, reports that Zoom calls are not end-to-end encrypted, calls can be listened in by hackers, publicly available internet meeting recordings, and uninvited attendees able to divert calls have raised major global concerns. Elsewhere, several schools in the United States also switched to Microsoft Teams for distance learning and immediately banned Zoom. Even Elon Musk's SpaceX has banned the use of Zoom by its officials, and Canada's electronic surveillance agency has also failed to approve the platform for "any government discussions that require secure communications." Last week, Zoom CEO Eric Yuan apologized for the incidents and announced that the company would stop working on new features to focus on securing the platform. Zoom's market value has fallen by a third since hitting a record high in late March, and its shares have also seen a 1% drop in premarket trading on the Nasdaq. Via: Bloomberg