Zoom

Zoom supports universal and affordable access to digital technologies through its contribution to EducationSuperHighway, a non-profit that provides free internet access to US households that have internet facilities at home but cannot afford to connect. Further, the company makes a public commitment to integrate accessible design principles into its products and has integrated various accessibility features on its platform. Additionally, Zoom discloses its community investment.

Zoom supports basic digital skills development through its Centre for Youth and Development. Additionally, the company supports the non-profit organisation Re:Coded, which is dedicated to providing students with the skills, resources, and networks necessary to launch new careers in the technology field.

The company has a Chief Information Security Officer; Chief Compliance, Ethics and Privacy Officer; and dedicated cybersecurity, privacy and trust and safety teams. Moreover, Zoom considers data privacy a key topic in its materiality assessment.

Zoom participates in standards organisations and uses open source software components in projects. Further, through development solutions like software development kits (SDKs), application programming interfaces (APIs) and the Zoom Developer Platform, the company provides developers with the tools they need to build apps and integrations for its platform. Zoom also shows leading practice by disclosing the number of its women employees working in tech roles.

There is limited evidence of Zoom’s initiatives targeting digital opportunities for women and girls. While the company reports its community investment, it can also disclose how the economic value it generates is distributed among other stakeholders as well as its employment and the income taxes it pays in its main markets.

The company has an opportunity to improve its disclosure of participation metrics for the skills development programmes it supports.

Little evidence was found (in the financial year 2021) on how Zoom monitors, remedies and reports on cybersecurity incidents, as well as how it applies responsible practices in relation to personal data. Zoom reports having information security certification and shows best practice by making its certificate publicly available. It can also disclose the number of data breaches it experiences. Although Zoom works with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children in the US and several relevant organisations in the area of online protection for children, no evidence was found that the company has a high-level commitment to child online safety.

Little evidence was found on how Zoom contributes to sustainability research or supports sustainable development. The company also has the opportunity to disclose the ethical principles it follows in its research and development (R&D) activities.

Zoom commits to respecting human rights and has a grievance mechanism accessible to both workers and external stakeholders to raise human rights concerns and complaints. However, the company does not provide a formal policy commitment with regard to respecting the ILO core labour rights. Furthermore, Zoom does not disclose a process to identify, assess and act on salient human rights risks in its own operations and in its business relationships. The company also does not engage with stakeholders whose human rights could be impacted by its operations.

Zoom publicly commits to respecting worker health and safety. The company does not disclose a policy commitment stating that it does not require workers to work more than the regular and overtime hours. It is also not explicit about expecting its business relationships to make this commitment. In relation to workforce diversity, Zoom provides a breakdown of employee numbers per employee category for gender, race and ethnicity. However, no company commitment towards promoting gender equality and women’s empowerment was found in the public domain.

Zoom has a policy prohibiting bribery and corruption, and it includes anti-bribery and anti-corruption clauses in its business relationship contracts. Furthermore, the company has a grievance mechanism for stakeholders to raise concerns and complaints on the topic. Zoom does not, however, disclose how it takes steps to identify and address bribery and corruption. It also does not disclose any relevant information in relation to tax, such as a global tax strategy or its income tax payments in individual tax jurisdictions. Moreover, the company does not disclose its approach to lobbying and political engagement. Specifically, it has no public statement indicating that it does not make political contributions, and it does not disclose its lobbying expenditures.