Keep your virtual meetings secure

As virtual meetings continue to play a key role in how students, faculty and staff collaborate, it’s important to take a few simple steps to ensure your meetings stay secure, productive and interruption-free.

Recently, the Ohio University Office of Information Technology has received reports of unexpected participants, including automated AI bots, joining meetings. While seemingly harmless, these interruptions can disrupt conversations, expose University data to unapproved third-party vendors, raise privacy concerns and compromise the overall meeting experience. The good news is that most of these issues can be prevented with a few easy security practices.

Why securing your meetings matters

Taking a moment to configure your meeting settings can provide several benefits:

• Protect sensitive information – Meetings often include internal discussions, student information or project details. Securing your session helps ensure only intended participants have access.
• Prevent unwanted disruptions – Features like waiting rooms, host controls and meeting passwords help keep uninvited guests (including bots) out of your meetings.
• Maintain professionalism and focus – A secure meeting environment allows everyone to concentrate on the discussion without distractions or interruptions.
• Control participant access and activity – Tools such as muting participants, restricting screen sharing and locking meetings give hosts full control over the session.

Simple steps make a big difference

Whether you’re hosting a team check-in, teaching a class or meeting with external partners, small actions like requiring authentication, using unique meeting links or enabling waiting rooms can significantly improve your meeting’s security.

Learn more

For tips, best practices, and step-by-step guidance on securing your virtual meetings, please visit the Securing Virtual Meetings webpage.

Taking a few proactive steps today can help ensure your meetings remain safe, secure and productive for everyone involved.