Former Zoom executive Jin Xinjiang worked with Chinese authorities to provide data on users outside of China. Court documents say this allowed Zoom to keep market access in China.
Although Zoom is based in the United States, its software is developed in China.
When Zoom usage exploded during the pandemic, China tightened control. It ordered Zoom employees to shut down what Beijing calls “illegal” meetings and accounts within one minute. If it took more than one minute, it was rated “security non-compliant.”
Victims include activists commemorating Tiananmen Square Massacre victims and Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang, China.
Zoom says it’s cooperating with federal investigators and has launched an internal investigation. Zoom fired Jin and placed other employees on administrative leave.
The CCP demands all communications companies censor speech it deems unacceptable. Anyone who fails to comply gets blocked from the massive Chinese market. In September last year, the CCP blocked Zoom. It allegedly told Zoom that if it wanted to get back into the Chinese market, it had to monitor user communications, censor unacceptable topics, give data on around 1 million people in the United States, and hand over special access to Zoom’s systems. Zoom got back into China’s market in November of last year.