Zoom is a video conferencing platform that suddenly gained attention due to an increased workforce depending on video conferencing applications. More recently Zoom became a vital resource for all those working from home due to the Covid-19 Pandemic. According to reports, Zoom saw the biggest number of downloads in a single day during the week of March 2020 (343,000 users).
The Video and Audio application includes more than a few features that are helpful for students and workers who are stuck at home. The features include:
- Team and One on One Chats
- HD video calling capability
- Allows users to record and transcript the meetings
- Screen sharing feature and Co-Annotation
- Supports up to 10,000 video participants and 49 videos on Screen
The features you will get on your Zoom account will depend on the plan you choose. If you are just a basic user looking for a video calling application to chat with family and friends then you should go with the free basic plan. Huge businesses, schools, or organizations should choose a plan that offers a bunch of features as per the user’s needs.
How Can I Get Zoom App?
Signing up for the basic free plan is really simple if you have a Facebook or Google account. Download the app from the Google Play Store or Apple App Store. Click on Sign in if you already have an account, if you don’t then make a new account to use Zoom.
To sign in manually you have to follow these steps:
- Enter your Email address and wait for the email that contains your confirmation link. Tap on the button labeled as “Activate Account”.
- Enter your full name and password in their respective boxes. Your password must contain 8 characters including, One Letter, One Number, and Upper and Lower case characters.
- You can choose to add a few friends or family members if you want or you can skip the step.
- Once you have downloaded Zoom, head to your personal URL on your Zoom activation page and select the Link to start your test meeting.
Is Zoom Safe for Kids To Use?
After the video conferencing platform came into light, a lot of reports came in about the application not being safe to use. While the one link entry method is easy and convenient for users, but it can also be used by hackers to start meeting and activate your webcam. The same one Link entry method could result in a term known as “Zoombombing”. Zoombombers can get the link to your video conference and can even get sensitive data. Zoombombers are known to disrupt meetings and in some cases, they have even graded online classes.
Zoom’s CEO, Eric Yuan has publicly acknowledged the problem in the platform regarding security. He also released a blog regarding the measures they have taken to update the security of the platform for better usage. If you are concerned about how secure your video conferences are, try to take a few precautions to keep your call safe from spammers.
- Don’t share your call invites, keep the link to your video conference between you and the participants of the video.
- We suggest you password protect all your calls so that no one can enter the calls without your permission.
- Disable Screen sharing, in your advanced settings you can disable screen sharing settings. Once you disable screen sharing, hackers can’t take control of your screen and share their own content.
It doesn’t take much to save you and other participants of the video conference from being attacked by hackers or spammers. We hope this guide helped you understand how to use zoom and keep yourself safe from spammers.