Zoom's Screen Sharing Feature Could Reveal Sensitive Information of its Users - Why You Should Worry About This?

Be careful in using the screen-sharing feature of Zoom. You never know how much the potential risk is involved once it is enabled for other people to view and get yourself exposed.

Besides, the security glitch will also leave you open to unwanted attacks, further putting you in jeopardy of giving your sensitive information without knowing what is happening in the first place.

The Dangers Behind Zoom's Desktop Sharing Feature

In a report by Tom's Guide, the Zoom presenter might accidentally reveal a piece of personal detail, such as an email address and passwords, without them knowing about it. There are also times that the private areas of your computer could possibly be viewed by the audience.

While the feature gives users the freedom to share their screen with other participants, the security flaw can lead to a dysfunctional "single-application view," as stated by German-based SySS security consultant Michael Strametz and researcher Matthias Deeg Michael Strametz.

This means that instead of one app being broadcasted, there is a possibility that the viewers can also access other windows open on the screen of the presenter.

Not only is the privacy of the presenter bypassed here, but the moment that the rest of the screen is already visible, the intruder will be able to record the video.

How Exploitable is This Security Bug?

In the first place, it would require the presence of the perpetrator to be present during the meeting.

Of course, how the user will fare to this flaw depends on how the presenter shared their data. Among those risks, password sharing will be the most serious problem and the confidential notes in the form of emails and online reminders.

If a user happens to stumble on an animal website, there would be no problem since this will not cover any issues concerning personal information. However, this scenario might be embarrassing on the attackers, but this will become the least of your worries.

In an interview with Threatpost, Zoom said that the company is now working to address the security problem.

For now, limit your activity during Zoom presentations. For your safety, do not open any apps that you think will cause a lot of security problems.

On Dec. 2, 2020, a security bug was discovered in Zoom's screen-sharing option. At the time, the experts are still figuring out how to solve the bug. Researchers said that the Zoom version 5.5.4 (13142.0301) will still be an outlet of user data exposure.

It's good to know how technology has evolved over the past years, with each feature added to enhance its capability to help its users. However, at the expense of data leaks, the users should know the limitation in using the application so that unnecessary data sharing will not occur.

For researchers, tightening the security will be their main task for the users to be more comfortable using the application without thinking about what could happen to their data online.

This article is owned by Tech Times.

Written by Joen Coronel