Video-conferencing firm Zoom has agreed to pay $86m (£61.9m) to settle a class action privacy lawsuit in the US. The lawsuit alleged that Zoom had invaded the privacy of millions of users by sharing personal data with Facebook, Google and LinkedIn. It also accused Zoom of misstating that it offers end-to-end encryption and for failing to prevent hackers from "zoombombing" sessions. The firm denied any wrongdoing, but has agreed to boost its security practices.
The preliminary settlement, which also includes a provision that Zoom will give its staff specialised training in data handling and privacy, is still subject to approval by US District Judge Lucy Koh in San Jose, California. A Zoom spokesman said: "The privacy and security of our users are top priorities for Zoom, and we take seriously the trust our users place in us. "We are proud of the advancements we have made to our platform, and look forward to continuing to innovate with privacy and security at the forefront." The class-action lawsuit, filed in March 2020 in the US District Court in the Northern District of California, is just one of several legal complaints facing the US-based video-conferencing platform.
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of Zoom Meetings paid subscribers nationwide, as well as free users. According to the plaintiff's lawyers, US Zoom subscribers generated $1.3bn in revenues for the video-conferencing firm. Should the proposed settlement be approved, subscribers included in the class action would be eligible for 15% refunds on their subscriptions or $25, whichever is larger, while others could receive up to $15. The plaintiffs' lawyers also intend to seek $21.3m in legal fees from Zoom.
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