Facebook's new video-call feature “Messenger Rooms” looks eerily similar to Zoom — but it might come under the same scrutiny about security and privacy that’s plagued Zoom. Here’s what you need to know:
Facebook users can invite their friends to the new Messenger Rooms service, even if those people are not on the social network.Facebook users can invite their friends to the new Messenger Rooms service, even if those people are not on the social network.Facebook is rolling out a video-call competitor to Zoom, aimed at groups of up to 50 people., allows anyone with a Facebook account to create a video meeting and invite their friends to join, even if those people are not Facebook users.
However, Zoom's ease of use — initially, users just needed to click a single link to join a meeting — has made the service a target for abuse. In"" attacks, unwanted intruders have disrupted meetings with pornography and racist harassment. Zoom has since taken steps to improve security, including requiring participants to enter passwords by default.
Messenger Rooms looks eerily similar to Zoom and functions in much the same way. Participants can join without downloading an app. It also mirrors elements of the popular video app: Facebook users will see notifications at the top of their news feed about new"rooms" their friends have created, so they can"drop in" as they want.
The company said Messenger Rooms will have default settings to protect meetings from intruders. People who create the rooms can control who is allowed to join. They can make a room open to anyone they are friends with on Facebook, or they can invite specific people.
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Facebook Goes To War With Zoom, Introduces 50-Person Chat FeatureI’m a San Francisco-based reporter covering breaking news at Forbes. I’ve previously reported for USA Today, Business Insider, The San Francisco Business Times and San Jose Inside. I studied journalism at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and was an editor at The Daily Orange, the university’s independent student newspaper. Follow me on Twitter rachsandl or shoot me an email rsandlerforbes.com.
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