There is no way that things are going to get any better than this. In today’s world, hybrid work has become a reality, and it will remain so for some time to come. There! We said it! Frank Dickson writes that “Securing the Real World: Accelerating Collaboration, Minimizing Risk” is a white paper published by IDC, written by Frank Dickson and Christopher Rodriguez.

As mentioned in the paper, IDC has predicted that flexible work would be the result of the pandemic even before it got underway, this is a testimony to how work has changed permanently. According to IDC’s report, which was commissioned by Zoom, the new working world comes with a host of intricacies, that need to be carefully considered, and that the Zoom platform is equipped with the right features to help ensure the flexible communication workers desire.

A brave new world (of work)

It is apparent that flexible work is a part of everyday life these days, and IDC predicts it will only expand and evolve in the future. Dickson and Rodriguez note in their white paper that the IDC will predict that 70% of G2000 companies will employ remote or hybrid work models by the year 2023 as a result of digital transformation and business volatility (IDC FutureScape: Worldwide Future of Work 2022 Predictions, IDC #US47290521, October 2021). Organizations will need to rethink how they instrument the environments, in order to purposefully bridge the physical work spaces and the digital workspaces, as hybrid work models will force them to do so.”

How can we bridge the digital and physical divide in order to create a more connected world? There is an ever-growing demand for online-first collaboration tools such as chat, whiteboards, and online conference rooms that create meaningful connections asynchronously and in real-time, as discussed in the paper, which references IDC research that reveals a growing preference for online-first collaboration tools.

Business is embracing hybrid work in a big way, and that is nothing new. It should be noted, however, that many organizations are still working out the kinks when it comes to operationalizing new organizational models. IDC research confirms Dickson and Rodriguez’s observations that while a large number of organizations have mobilized to begin the conversion to hybrid work, certain aspects, such as cultural adjustments, are often omitted or neglected. Embracing a resilient mindset is a key component of an organization’s ability to succeed, because it can translate to strategic investments in people and processes that can translate to securing access to corporate resources throughout the day, anywhere, anytime.”

Security meets hybrid 

As business owners we have always understood the importance of security to the success of our business, and yet with the transition towards hybrid work we have had to redefine what that foundation entails. As a modern workplace, technology must provide the kind of security controls necessary to make sure that it is able to manage the new types of threats that modern workers face and to be able to address them. This can improve the flexibility and scalability of the network.

Dickson and Rodriguez, authors of the article, explained that “digital transformation has also unleashed innovative new business practices that have reshaped how, where, and when businesses occur.” In the same way that technological advancements spur business practice evolution, security practices and technologies must also evolve in response. There needs to be a fundamental reassessment of risk and risk-mitigating controls to provide a true modernization of security to address our hybrid workplace reality.”

There has never been a more important time for adaptive security. Dickson and Rodriguez pointed out in their paper that as employee expectations for offsite access become more widespread, the debate over on site versus remote access becomes less relevant as time goes on. Whatever the user environment is, whether it is onsite or remote, or a combination of both, the need for security to adapt is the same across the board.”

Security and privacy controls are evidence-based tools that can have a significant impact on whether or not a solution is adopted. In a recent study conducted by IDC, it has been found that security and governance play a larger role in determining which collaboration platform is selected than many other factors (see the figure below for further explanation).

Zoom’s security posture 

There is no doubt that organizations are enabling flexible work in recent years, and it is critical that they partner with a company that offers their platform with security and privacy controls that are relevant to flexible work. As a result of the work we’ve done at Zoom, IDC has taken note of what’s happening.

Because security, privacy, and confidentiality are foundational to the way work is done, not just hybrid work, Zoom has made sure that its platform implements the appropriate features to meet these needs. With Zoom, IT organizations are able to implement a zero trust strategy because it is designed around zero trust principles, including two-factor authentication (2FA) and single sign-on (SSO) that can help them implement a zero trust strategy,” added Dickson and Rodriguez.

According to the authors, when they examined the Zoom platform further, they found that it offers a wide range of security features that can be applied to a variety of its products so that they can provide meaningful and safe workplace communication for employees. The Zoom platform includes a number of critical business enablers, including watermarking for content sharing and meetings, video and audio, a chat etiquette tool that identifies sensitive keywords such as account numbers, social security numbers, and account numbers in real time [data in transit]. These features are critical business enablers that Zoom offers to businesses. The authors went on to explain that 256-bit AES-GCM encryption is the standard for real-time data and media transfer.

In addition, the white paper covers topics such as our efforts to comply with regulations, initiatives such as the CISO Council and bug bounty program, as well as our educational resources, such as the Trust Center and Learning Center, as well as other topics. Throughout the paper, the author discusses how each of these helps address the “human factor” which is prevalent in modern-day security issues, irrespective of the type of customer who is experiencing the issue.

According to Dickson and Rodriguez, “the same human factors that inform Zoom’s platform can be equally beneficial in catering to the needs of a business as they are to a teacher’s fifth-grade class,” they concluded.

A platform built for future-proofing

The misperception that Zoom is a security control point can be overlooked as a security control point is one of the few roadblocks that prevent today’s businesses from benefiting from Zoom’s security architecture, Dickson and Rodriguez observe in their article. Zoom and collaboration/communications platforms are generally overlooked as a security control point. It is true that once a company has addressed this oversight, it is possible to develop new levels of seamless and secure communication on a digital platform.

“Zoom is an all-in-one communication platform, with features ranging from video conferencing to chat, conference rooms, phones, webinars, whiteboards, and virtual events solutions, with an aim to be the best of breed in this field. It does what it does by collaborating across a variety of channels. Moreover, the analysts found that Zoom is committed to security across all its key products, demonstrating the company’s commitment to security.

In addition, the analysts said, “IDC believes that the market will continue to demand more security, privacy, and confidentiality features from collaboration platforms, and Zoom has the opportunity to succeed in this space to the extent that it is able to address the challenges discussed in this paper.”

This technology enables organizations to manage remote and hybrid workforces with ease and create a realistic and scalable approach to security that will evolve as the business operates. Zoom supports remote and hybrid workforces with technology that deploys easy-to-use security features.

Our Trust Center will provide you with additional information about Zoom’s approach to security & privacy, as well as information about how we deliver the highest level of security & privacy.

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