Zoom lifts 40-minute time limit for Thanksgiving video calls

Thanks to the pandemic, video conferencing platform Zoom has more than doubled its income and grown its user base by more than 30-fold from a year ago. As a way of saying “thanks” on Thanksgiving, the company is removing the 40-minute time limit from its free version so that virtual family gatherings can be as long as they want to be.

In its announcement on Twitter, the company said that the unlimited usage will run from midnight ET on Thursday, November 26 through 6 a.m. ET on Friday, November 27.

Zoom calls are now safer and better protected

While Zoom has had some rather large issues with security concerns, the company seems to be back on the right track heading into the holidays. So if you plan on sharing Granny’s secret sweet potato pie recipe, it should be safe from prying eyes. 

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) recently announced a settlement with the company that will require the company to implement a sturdier information security program. The FTC alleged that Zoom engaged in a series of “deceptive and unfair practices” that essentially undermined the security of its users and created the possibility that other people (including Zoom) could read a user’s content. 

Zoom has promised that, going forward, it will employ multi-factor authentication to protect against unauthorized access to its network, institute data deletion controls, and take steps to prevent the use of known compromised user credentials.