Securing the Virtual Meeting Space: An Analysis of Cybersecurity Risks and Mitigation Strategies for Video Conferencing Platforms

Abstract

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic precipitated an unprecedented global shift to remote work and virtual interaction, establishing video conferencing software as an indispensable communication tool. This rapid, large-scale adoption, driven by necessity, has concurrently exposed significant cybersecurity vulnerabilities, creating a new and potent attack surface for malicious actors.

Objective: This article provides a comprehensive analysis of the cybersecurity risks inherent in modern video conferencing platforms. It aims to synthesize disparate reports and technical findings into a clear taxonomy of threats and, subsequently, to develop a multi-layered framework of mitigation strategies for end-users, organizations, and software vendors.

Methods: A systematic literature review of academic papers, government advisories, and industry reports was conducted. The analysis synthesizes findings from 12 key sources to identify prevalent vulnerabilities and comparatively evaluates the security postures and responses of major platforms, including Zoom, GoToMeeting, and Skype, as documented in the literature [4, 6, 12].

Results: The analysis identifies critical threat categories, including unauthorized access and meeting hijacking (i.e., "Zoombombing") [1], failures in data privacy and end-to-end encryption [5, 12], and the use of platforms as vectors for phishing and malware. The comparative review reveals that while many vendors have retroactively improved security, fundamental differences in architecture and a "security-by-design" philosophy persist among competitors [9, 10].

Conclusion: Securing virtual gatherings requires a shared responsibility model. Effective, sustainable protection is not achievable through software features alone but demands a tripartite effort combining user vigilance informed by best practices [2], robust organizational governance and training [3], and a vendor commitment to transparent, security-first engineering.