Neo-Nazi trolls have been found Zoom-bombing meetings just to throw racist and anti-Semitic abuse at chat participants. This comes at a time when coronavirus lockdown orders are keeping more people at home, and during Passover where much of the Jewish community are online and using video chat services to celebrate with loved ones.
The COVID-19 pandemic has forced many governments to employ strict social-distancing measures and lockdown orders in an attempt to contain the virus. Since people are having to isolate at home, the use of video call apps has increased massively. While Zoom remains one of the more popular options, severe security flaws have been revealed recently, including Zoom-bombings. This is where someone intentionally enters an online Zoom meeting that they have not been invited to with the sole purpose of disrupting it. The ability to do this is partly due to the cloud-based design of the application where anyone with the link to a public chat is able to enter.
Zoom chats are now being disrupted by Neo-Nazis hurting anti-Semitic slurs. Many users are reporting on social media that the trolls are able to hack the meetings and unmute their audio to hurl abuse. An example was recently provided by Gideon Lichfield, editor-in-chief of MIT Technology Review, who noted in a tweet how one of his Zoom meetings was invaded by trolls using anti-Semitic language, with other users confiming equally unpleasant experiences. The U.S. Justice Department recently issued a statement making it clear that hacking of teleconferencing sessions during the coronavirus pandemic is a criminal offense, and those affected can report it to FBI’s Internet Crime Complaint Center. The statement also gave guidelines on how users of the service can take measures to make video-conferencing safer.
Neo-Nazi Trolls The Latest Zoom Issue
While it helps that chat users have the option to lodge a formal complaint if interrupted, Neo-Nazi Zoom-bombing is particularly disturbing considering the religious relevance of the week. Although probably not the only source, Twitter appears to have become a space for those planning Zoom raids with hundreds of Twitter accounts openly sharing Zoom meeting codes online. While disturbing, this is not the only issue currently affecting the service with the numerous security flaws having prompted many organizations and companies to abandon the app for their in-house communication. Due to this, it might be wise for general users to consider a similar course of action considering there are plenty of smooth and secure platforms for video calls available, with Skype, Google Hangouts, Facebook Messenger and Around, all likely to be safer options.
With millions of video chat users looking at an extended lockdown period, uninterrupted communication will be crucial for those working from home or those just looking to ease the stress by keeping in touch with others. With all that is currently going on, people have more than enough to worry about without having to deal with Neo-Nazi online trolls and Zoom’s routine security issues.
