Memo distributed to Rice community on 4-27-20
Colleagues,
The Information Security Office (ISO) and the Office of Information Technology (OIT) have been closely watching security issues regarding Zoom, the online education and meeting tool. In an effort to address these concerns with Zoom, new default settings will be enabled before the start of summer sessions.
The following new default settings will go into effect on May 1, 2020 to prevent any disruptions on scheduled spring meetings:
- Meeting passwords will be required
- Meeting passwords will be embedded in meeting link
- Private chats will be disabled
- Participants will not be able to annotate
The new default settings should help improve security on Zoom sessions and prevent disruptions such as Zoombombing. To provide flexibility, these settings won’t be locked down but we encourage meeting hosts not to change them (learn more: https://kb.rice.edu/101344). Keeping your Zoom software updated (https://zoom.us/download) is another key component to securing your Zoom sessions (see also: https://kb.rice.edu/100275).
If you have any issues or concerns, or need assistance in safely setting up Zoom meetings, please contact the OIT Help Desk at 713-348-HELP or helpdesk@rice.edu.
Thank you.
Marc Scarborough
Chief Information Security Officer