Zoom won't encrypt conversations for free users so law enforcement can intercept calls

Zoom will strengthen security protections on its phone calls – but only if people pay, according to the company's chief executive Eric Yuan. Those accounts and organisations that pay for the premium service will have their encryption increased, so that calls cannot be intercepted, he announced. But people using the free version will not benefit from those protections, so that their calls can be watched by law enforcement. The company has attracted greater business during the coronavirus pandemic, with multitudes of people working from home and continuing their lives via video call, but has seen people entering video calls they should not have been in – a practise called "zoombombing" – which has led to people being subject to harassment or made to view footage of child abuse. "Free users for sure we don't want to give that because we also want to work together with FBI, with local law enforcement in case some people use Zoom for a bad purpose," Yuan said as part of the company's financial results for the first quarter of 2020.