New and Improved

Zoom improves password requirements and introduces longer meeting IDs in latest update

Zoom is pushing out weekly updates following an alarming number of security issues found on its platform.
Stephen Warwick

ConferenceSource: Zoom

What you need to know

  • Zoom has pushed out another weekly security update.
  • The latest iteration brings new and improved password requirements.
  • It has also improved meeting ID generation for increased privacy.

Zoom has issued the latest of its weekly updates regarding its push to make the platform more secure.

Last week, Zoom announced a collaboration with industry security experts from the likes of Netflix, Uber, and EA. Now, we are beginning to see the fruits of those labors.

In a blog post on April 14, Zoom announced updates to its password requirements, random meeting IDs and more. From the release:

Password requirements: For meetings and webinars, account owners and admins can now configure minimum meeting password requirements to adjust the minimum length and require letters, numbers, and special characters, or allow only numeric passwords. All free Basic accounts will have the alphanumeric option on by default.

Random meeting IDs: One-time randomly generated meetings IDs for newly scheduled meetings and webinars will be 11 digits instead of nine. Your Personal Meeting ID (PMI) will remain the same.

Zoom has also updated Cloud recordings, turning on passwords by default for all accounts and enhancing password complexity.

Zoom has restored third-party file sharing after temporarily disabling the feature as part of its security review. It has also updated Zoom Chat so that users can hide the message preview for desktop chat notifications. If you turn it off, you'll get a notification about a message, but won't see the content of the message in the preview.

Zoom also says that it has fixed "issues related to missing data and delay on the Zoom Dashboard."

Zoom has endured a torrid time since its rise to prominence due to increased remote working and social-distancing/lockdown measures. Following its rise in popularity a swathe of security and privacy concerns were raised regarding the app, so much so that Zoom came forward to apologize, and vowed a 90-day new feature freeze whilst it reviewed its security.

Zoom has recently confirmed that since the pandemic, it has seen its usage uptake increase to more than 3 million daily downloads.