Zoom, the popular video call service has had a number of privacy and security issues over the years and we’ve seen several very recently as Zoom has seen usage skyrocket during the coronavirus pandemic. Now two new bugs have been discovered that allow hackers to take control of Macs including the webcam, microphone, and even full root access.
MorphVOX Pro can be used for voice changing in Zoom conferences. Here's how to set up MorphVOX just for Zoom: Run MorphVOX; Open Zoom and at the top right click on your settings option button. After the settings window opens click on the 'Audio' tab. Update 4/2: Zoom has issued an apology for its privacy and security gaffes, patched these two most recent Mac bugs, and laid out a plan for the next 90 days to improve the service. The Zoom app is designed to seamlessly let businesses hold video conference meetings by clicking on a web link. But the same feature can also be abused by hackers to spy on Mac users via the.
Update 4/2: Zoom has issued an apology for its privacy and security gaffes, patched these two most recent Mac bugs, and laid out a plan for the next 90 days to improve the service.
But if you’re still wanting to switch to another option, check out our roundup of 10 Zoom alternatives here.
Reported by TechCrunch, the new flaws were discovered by Ex-NSA hacker Patrick Wardle, now principal security researcher at Jamf, who detailed his findings on his blog Objective-See.
Zoom Hack March 2020
Wardle goes through a history of Zoom’s privacy and security issues like the webcam hijacking we saw last summer, the calls not actually being end-to-end encrypted as the company claims, the iOS app sending user data to Facebook, and more.
That brings us to today. Wardle’s new bug discoveries mean Macs are vulnerable to webcam and mic takeover again, in addition to taking gaining root access to a Mac. It does have to be a local attack but the bug makes it relatively easy for an attacker to gain total control in macOS through Zoom.
As such, today when Felix Seele also noted that the Zoom installer may invoke the AuthorizationExecuteWithPrivileges API to perform various privileged installation tasks, I decided to take a closer look. Almost immediately I uncovered several issues, including a vulnerability that leads to a trivial and reliable local privilege escalation (to root!).
Wardle describes the entire process in technical detail if you’re interested but the flaw comes down to this:
To exploit Zoom, a local non-privileged attacker can simply replace or subvert the runwithroot script during an install (or upgrade?) to gain root access.
Then, a second flaw Wardle discovered allows access for hackers to access a Mac’s camera and mic and even record the screen, all without a user prompt.
Unfortunately, Zoom has (for reasons unbeknown to me), a specific “exclusion” that allows malicious code to be injected into its process space, where said code can piggy-back off Zoom’s (mic and camera) access! This give malicious code a way to either record Zoom meetings, or worse, access the mic and camera at arbitrary times (without the user access prompt)!
Zoom didn’t respond to TechCrunch after a request for comment. With the millions of people using Zoom with the current global health crisis, hopefully, we see a fix real fast!
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Having trouble making out the tiny type on your Mac’s display? In just a few clicks, you can magnify the entire screen—a handy trick, particularly for anyone with iffy eyesight.
Besides zooming the entire display, you can also set your Mac to zoom in “picture-in-picture” mode.
Here’s what you do (and here’s the Windows version of this tip, by the way)…
Zoom Mac Hack
- Click the Apple menu in the top-left corner of the screen, select System Preferences, then click the Accessibility icon.
- On the next screen, click “Zoom” in the left column to see all your zoom options—and yes, there are a bunch.
- Want to use the keyboard to zoom your screen? Click “Use keyboard shortcuts to zoom,” then start zooming by pressing COMMAND + OPTION + 8. To zoom in, press COMMAND + OPTION + “=” (equal sign), or zoom out by pressing COMMAND + OPTION + “-” (minus sign). To turn zooming off, press COMMAND + OPTION + 8 again.
- You can also use the trackpad to zoom the screen. Check the box marked “Use scroll gesture with modifier keys to zoom,” then scroll on the trackpad while pressing one of three keys: CONTROL, OPTION, or COMMAND. (Choose which key you want to use from the pull-down menu.)
- Besides zooming the entire display, you can also turn the cursor into a magnifying glass. To do so, click the menu labeled “Zoom Style” and choose “Picture-in-picture.”
- Last but not least, you can customize almost every aspect of how zooming behaves by clicking the “More Options” button. For example, in “Picture-in-picture” mode, you can set the degree of magnification, choose whether the magnification frame follows your mouse or stays put, or have your Mac speak aloud any magnified words after a short delay. In “Fullscreen” mode, you can set the maximum and minimum zoom, as well as determine whether the zoomed-in screen moves as you move the cursor.