Zoom ‘not a safe platform’: MHA in new guidelines
The government has advised private individuals to prevent unauthorized entry in the conference room and guard against DoS (Denial-of-Service) attack by restricting user entry through passwords and access grant.
The ministry of home affairs issued an advisory on Thursday stating that videoconferencing application, Zoom, is “not a safe platform” for users and issued a set of guidelines for private individuals if they wish to continue using the app.
The MHA advisory comes after the national cyber security agency, Computer Emergency Response Team of India (CERT-in), cautioned that the app, which has become a popular medium of communication amid the ongoing lockdown, was vulnerable to cyber attacks.
The government has advised private individuals to prevent unauthorized entry in the conference room and guard against DoS (Denial-of-Service) attack by restricting user entry through passwords and access grant.
“Most of the settings can be done by login into users zoom account at website, or installed application at PC/Laptop/Phone and also during conduct of conference. However certain settings are possible through certain mode/channel only. For example, lock meeting can be enabled by administrator only when the meeting has started,” the advisory states.
In its earlier advisories on March 30 and April 6, CERT-in had stated that an unguarded usage of the application will make one vulnerable to information leak.
“Insecure usage of the platform may allow cyber criminals to access sensitive information such as meeting details and conversation,” it had said.