Zoom Class Action Says App Sends User Info to Facebook

A Zoom user is suing the videoconferencing app maker for secretly sharing his personal information with Facebook and possibly other outside parties.

Ajay Kirpekar, of California, claims in the Zoom class action lawsuit that despite touting strong security, the app’s coding was specifically designed to disclose user data to Facebook.

Use of Zoom and similar apps has skyrocketed since the coronavirus pandemic hit, leading to widespread “shelter in place” directives.

“Naturally, consumers have flooded to Zoom, and other web conferencing vendors, as a means to more safely maintain closeness with friends and loved ones and conduct business,” the Zoom class action lawsuit states.

Trust is a key element of Zoom’s marketing materials, which tout the company’s appreciation of the importance of maintaining user privacy, according to the Zoom class action lawsuit.

“Zoom [states] on its website ‘You trust us to connect you to the people that matter. We value that trust more than anything else. We want you to know what data we collect and how we use it to provide our service.’”

The Zoom class action lawsuit also quotes the company’s privacy policy, which says it “utilize[s] a combination of industry standard security technologies, procedures, and organizational measures to help protect your Personal Data from unauthorized access, use, or disclosure.”

But the Zoom class action lawsuit argues those statements ring hollow. “Defendant’s statements regarding the inviolability of its users’ privacy and personal information are false because Defendant’s wholly inadequate program design and security measures have resulted, and will continue to result, in unauthorized disclosure of its users’ personal information to third parties, including Facebook.”

The Zoom class action lawsuit states: “Upon installing or upon each opening of the Zoom App, Zoom collects the personal information of its users and discloses, without adequate notice or authorization, this personal information to third parties, including Facebook … invading the privacy of millions of users.”

Plaintiff says he does not know how much money, if any, has exchanged hands between Zoom and Facebook in return for user data collected.

The Zoom class action lawsuit cites a March 26 Motherboard report documenting the technology behind that allegations: “The Zoom app notifies Facebook when the user opens the app, details on the user’s device such as the model, the time zone and city they are connecting from, which phone carrier they are using, and a unique advertiser identifier created by the user’s device which companies can use to target a user with advertisements.”

The day after that article appeared, according to the Zoom class action lawsuit, Zoom admitted in a blog post that the app was in fact sending Facebook a long list of information about its users and their devices, including IP address, device model, disk space available and more.

Zoom also released a new version of its videoconferencing app that day, claiming this new version would not send that unauthorized data to Facebook.

However, it was not a required update to the existing software; so users of the original app continue to have their data stolen, the Zoom class action lawsuit maintains. “Zoom appears to have taken no action to block any of the prior versions of the Zoom App from operating.”

Plus, for existing users, the damage is already done. “Zoom has not ensured that Facebook (or anyone else, including others with whom Facebook has shared this personal information) has deleted all the personal information that it received from Zoom without adequate notice or authorization by Zoom’s users,” states the Zoom class action lawsuit.

The plaintiff in the Zoom class action lawsuit claims he and other users would not have been so willing to use Zoom had they known their information would be shared with undisclosed third parties.

“Zoom’s failure to implement adequate security protocols and failure to provide accurate disclosures to its users violated those users’ privacy and falls well short of Zoom’s promises.”

The Zoom class action lawsuit alleges negligence, invasion of privacy and unjust enrichment, as well as violations of California’s Constitution, Consumer Privacy Act, Unfair Competition Law and Consumers Legal Remedies Act.

The plaintiff is demanding a jury trial to seek injunctive relief, statutory and punitive damages, “the amounts by which the Defendant has been unjustly enriched through its conduct” and court costs.

Another Zoom user has filed a similar action in the same district court.

Kirpekar is represented by Dennis Stewart, Daniel E. Gustafson, David A. Goodwin and Ling S. Wang of Gustafson Gluek PLLC; and Garrett D. Blanchfield and Roberta A. Yard of Reinhardt Wendorf & Blanchfield.

The Zoom Class Action Lawsuit is Ajay Kirpekar v. Zoom Video Communications Inc., Case No. 5:20-cv-03042, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

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