Zoom Video Communications Inc. is facing a lawsuit from a user alleging that the widely used video-conferencing service is unlawfully disclosing personal information. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in San Jose, California, claims that Zoom collects user information during installation or app opening and shares it without proper notice to third parties, including Facebook Inc.
Despite Zoom’s shares more than doubling this year, driven by the increased use of teleconferencing due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the lawsuit contends that the company’s privacy policy fails to adequately inform users about the app’s code that discloses information to Facebook and potentially other third parties. The complaint argues that Zoom’s inadequate program design and security measures have led to the unauthorized disclosure of users’ personal information.
Robert Cullen, the plaintiff from Sacramento, seeks to represent other users and requests a declaration that Zoom violated California’s Consumer Privacy Act. He is pursuing damages under the act, along with punitive damages. Zoom has yet to respond to the lawsuit.
The legal action comes in the wake of a report by Motherboard, revealing that Zoom’s IOS app was sharing data with Facebook. Following the report, Zoom claimed to have removed the code responsible for sending data to Facebook. The case is identified as Cullen v. Zoom Video Communications, No. 20-cv-02155, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California (San Jose).
