Reports have found that 47 percent of Canadians work remotely for at least a week and a half or more each year. However, with the COVID-19 pandemic, many are spending a lot more hours working from home than previously. Many rely on services like Zoom to stay current and conduct business. However, keeping your Zoom meetings secure in Toronto has become something of paramount concern for most.
What is Zoombombing?
Zoombombing is when an uninvited person derails or interrupts your Zoom meeting. Some people refer to it as harmless trolling, but it is a form of harassment that most people don’t want in the workplace. When you are having a business conference, you do not want uninvited guests. Keeping Zoom meetings secure in Toronto is becoming particularly important as more of the world works from home.
Victims of Zoombombing
In every part of the globe, Zoombombing has become a problem. With so many using the wildly popular online communication tool, many are becoming victims of Zoombombing which is a form of hacking where forms of inappropriate content are displayed for the meeting’s participants. Also, it can be used to gather information. The United States Department of Justice recently ruled that Zoombombing is a federal offense.
Zoom Meeting Safety
To make things safer, Zoom has put in place many additional security measures however these are not full-proof, and many would argue that they are not enough. Without a doubt, users of platforms such as Zoom do have a distinct responsibility to guarantee the safety of their own meetings. Negligence such as creating an open Zoom link and sharing it on a social media site like Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter leads to immediate risky problems. Hackers have programs that search for such links online whenever they are shared in groups.
Tips for Keeping Your Online Meeting Secure in Toronto
With Zoom, you will find several different types of accounts available that offer various privileges and powers. Below are the two most popular:
- The Basic Account: The basic account remains free and lets you have unlimited one-on-one meetings but if the meetings hold three or more people then there is a 40-minute time limit in place.
- Pro Account: You can move up to the pro account which lets an administrator disable and enable calls. Plus, the limits reach up to 25 hours.
Keep Zoom Details Private
Do not share the information about your Zoom meeting publicly. Any time the link is published in an open forum, it becomes dangerous. Yes, most Zoom meetings have a public link, but you must refrain from sharing it. Trolls and hackers will quickly grab up the link and plan a Zoombombing. Also, avoid sharing meeting IDS. Only share such details privately.
Using Meeting IDs
If you use meeting IDs in place of links to create public events then always have the ID randomly generated instead of using your own personal meeting ID. Remember, sharing a meeting ID publicly allows anyone to venture forth and join the meeting and also crash the virtual space any time that they want. Please think of your personal meeting ID like your cellphone number; you would not share such information on Facebook or Twitter, and you should also not post your personal meeting ID. Also, abstain from sharing a screenshot of you and your colleagues while having a Zoom powwow. Yes, many people like to post such things on social media, but crashers can use the photo to gain admittance.
Using Registration
You don’t have to post a public link or meeting ID. Instead, you can set up a registration system. Certain tools like Eventbright allow you to register the details of everyone who will be attending the online meeting. All those who are registered will be sent a private message that contains a link and password that they must use to gain entry when the meeting starts. Yes, registration does add extra steps, but it lets the event host monitor who is being added to the meeting and is great for large groups that are virtual. Also, moderators can be put in place to double-check all the meeting’s participants.
Set Up a Waiting Room
Try setting up a waiting room that is now becoming a default setting for Zoom’s latest security measures. It is a great way to monitor exactly who is entering your meeting, so you don’t have any uninvited guests suddenly appear and infiltrate.
If you want to set up a waiting room then go into your settings and look for the advanced option. Click on them and then hit ‘enable waiting room.’ When participants join the meeting, they are automatically placed in a virtual waiting room. Once the host of the meeting verifies all participants then they are allowed into the call.
Another perk of the waiting room is to give you time to set up the meeting before everyone arrives, so you have the right screen shared and have the participants’ powers set in place in advance.
Lockdown the Zoom Meeting
Once all the participants have arrived in your Zoom meeting then it’s time to lockdown the virtual conference. You can do this by clicking on the ‘security’ link which you will find at the bottom of the screen. Choose, “lock meeting’ so that no one can join the meeting who does not have the meeting ID or password.
Restrict Participant Powers
You have the power to restrict the participants in your meeting. This is a great safety feature and puts a roadblock to potential problems as the meeting progresses. You can automatically mute all attendees as they enter so there are no disruptions. Also you can do this when you schedule the emitting by going to the advanced options when you set up the waiting room. You can also do it once you enter the actual meeting. There is a bar at the bottom of the screen that gives you the power to manage all the meeting’s participants. You could also make it where only the host can share their screen. In addition, you can place restrictions on the chat or even limit the chatting to the host only.
As you can see from the ideas in this article, there are a lot of ways to keep your zoom meetings secure in Toronto. However, if you have problems with your computer or you want to increase your security then please remember that Ticktocktech Technology Services is here to help you. We offer onsite repairs and remote service.
—You might also be interested in this article: The Importance of Repairing a Damaged PC
