Videoconferencing technology isn’t new, but it has experienced a distinct rise in popularity and strategic importance as many more organizations shift to remote work.
A flash survey of 550 U.S. employers in March 2020 and found that 67% of them were in the process of allowing more workers to telecommute. As these working arrangements become more common, video conferencing will be an important enabler of collaboration and productivity.
To be acceptable for regular business use, a videoconferencing solution must be high performing and highly secure. These requirements are even more important in remote work environments where people join using a variety of devices.
Not all videoconferencing security is created equal, however. Inadequate protection puts users at risk of attackers hijacking meetings, intercepting sensitive data or accessing recorded sessions without authorization.
For these reasons, it’s important to select a videoconferencing service like Google Meet, which implements multilayered protection against these common threats while offering a simple, scalable conferencing experience.
The 3 Main Security Risks to Videoconferences
Like all internet-connected applications, videoconferencing applications pose risks around improper access and data leakage. But they also present 3 distinct vulnerabilities:
- Hijacking: Online videoconferences have meeting IDs and PINs that are made public (e.g., because someone has posted one on their social media profile or email signature) or easily guessable. Without protection, any person with these meeting credentials could join and disrupt the proceedings or acquire sensitive information.
- Screen sharing: Related to the above, most videoconferencing applications include screen sharing functionality. An unauthorized participant could become the active presenter use to make their desktop the (unwanted) focus of the session.
- Recordings: Many video meetings are recorded for later viewing or transcription. Where and how these recordings are stored and protected is important, as improper access or lack of encryption can mean that sensitive information falls into the wrong hands.
Beyond these in-app risks, videoconferencing software also has the potential to increase the attack surface on a client device. For example, on a desktop or laptop PC, a videoconferencing solution may require the user to download browser plugins or other software, some of which fall outside secure distribution channels like the Windows Store or Mac App Store. These extras further increase risk of compromised security.
Google Meet: Secure Videoconferencing for Remote Work
Google Meet is a videoconferencing solution with multiple layers of protection against modern threats, making it ideal for corporate deployments.
Built on Google’s secure global infrastructure, it reliably stops abuse such as hijacking, securely stores and manages access to meeting recordings and runs safely and entirely within a browser (desktop), app (mobile) or dedicated video hardware (meeting room).
For instance, to prevent hijacking, it requires someone within the organization to approve any join request by an external participant. This reduces the risk of someone eavesdropping or actively disrupting the session.
Like other Google services, Google Meet undergoes regular audits for privacy, security and regulatory compliance. As well as industry-leading protections, it also delivers reliable and scalable performance, complete with support for hundreds of concurrent users, screen sharing, recording, G Suite integration and a 99.9% up-time service-level agreement.
Softchoice is committed to meeting your needs for business continuity, security and stability. By ensuring organizations get the most value from their Google Meet deployments, we help them scale and secure their communications and ultimately preserve productivity in increasingly remote workplaces.
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