May 8, 2020 - Economy & Business
Zoom buys encrypted messaging platform Keybase to patch privacy holes
- Dan Primack, author of Axios Pro Rata
Illustration: Aïda Amer/Axios
Zoom acquired Keybase, a New York-based encrypted messaging platform, for an undisclosed amount.
Why it matters: This is Zoom's first-ever acquisition in its nine-year history, and comes as the videoconferencing giant scrambles to patch security holes. The deal is intended to let Zoom offer end-to-end encryption for calls with large numbers of participants, which has proven to be challenging for rivals, although it only plans to make the feature available to paying customers.