Originally posted by the Voice of America. Voice of America content is produced by the Voice of America, a United States federal government-sponsored entity, and is in the public domain. Is Zoom Endangering Government Data? Carla Babb WASHINGTON - U.S. military and government employees continue to use the popular videoconferencing application Zoom for official business,despite FBI warnings about privacy and security issues, an action experts fear is increasing the riskofgovernment data breaches. Zoom has seen a surge in activity during the coronavirus pandemic as office workers across the country have turned to the free app to quickly arrange video calls with dozens of participants. The federal government has been no different, despite an FBI announcement April 1 that hackers could exploit weaknesses in videoconferencing software systems like Zoom to "steal sensitive information, target individuals and businesses performing financial transactions, and engage in extortion." The security concern is much greater than "[1]Zoom bombing" attacks reported by users whose chats have been infiltrated by hackers shouting profanities or posting lewd images. Experts say the teleconferencing app may introduce security risks not only during government employees' Zoom sessions, but to data that resides on government computers. "If there are vulnerabilities, the app can jeopardize the security of data on the computer on which it is installed, or even potentially on other computers on the same network," Joseph Steinberg, a leading cybersecurity expert and the author of'¯Cybersecurity for Dummies, tells VOA. "Such vulnerabilities have been discovered -- and more may exist." References 1. '%80%AFhttps://www.voanews.com/silicon-valley-technology/hackers-new-target-during-pandemic-video-conference-calls .