Zoom settles US class action privacy lawsuit for $86m

Zoom.Video-conferencing firm Zoom has agreed to pay $86m 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. 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 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. Zoom has also come under fire for security flaws, including a vulnerability that allowed an attacker to remove attendees from meetings, spoof messages from users and hijack shared screens. This means Zoom can access the video and audio of meetings, rather than the meeting's participants being the only ones able to decrypt communications.