Teams adds apps to conversations amid hacking concerns

Microsoft Teams is adding a number of Meetings features to its VoIP calls at a time when the security of video conferencing platforms has been called into question.

According to the Microsoft 365 roadmap, tabs, bots, in-meeting dialogs, and meeting steps will be available in Teams VoIP calls. All the features of a Teams meeting can be enjoyed in Teams VoIP calls.

The meetings and conversations may not be so pleasant, but if you need to worry about being hacked through the unusual ways your glasses have.

Weird new hacking technique

By spying on the reflection in your glasses, hackers can steal private information from your computer screen while you are connected to video conferencing solutions, such as Microsoft Teams, Webex by Cisco and Zoom.

A report by researchers at the University of Michigan and Zhejiang University demonstrated how the reflection in glasses can be the source of a computer hack.

According to the report, on-screen text as small as 10mm can be seen with over 75% accuracy via a 720p webcam.

The experiment was conducted under controlled laboratory conditions, and the results may be affected by real-world variables, such as the skin color of the participants, screen brightness, room lighting, the contrast between text and background, plus the glasses themselves.

Nevertheless, the risk remains a real threat to users of video conferencing applications, especially those using high-resolution cameras, which researchers say will allow hackers to see most of the header text on almost any website and text document.

Researchers had a 94% success rate in deciphering which website from Alexa’s top 100 websites was on the participant’s screen.

The hacking technique can have various applications, including managers spying on employees or competitors stealing important information.

Anti-reflective glasses may seem like the obvious solution, but these only block blue light and do not prevent reflections in your glasses.

An easy way to help reduce the reflectivity of your glasses is to use softer lighting instead of harsh white lights, which increase reflectivity.

However, you don’t need to delete your video conferencing applications just yet. Even if you are unlucky enough to fall victim to one of these hacks, most hackers will likely see large text. If you don’t enter your bank and other important details in font size 28, you should be safe.

Still, it’s a hacking technique to keep an eye on as it inevitably evolves to see more details more easily.

Hacking in Unified Communications

Hacking has been around as long as unified communications has existed and affects every aspect of the online world.

Last year, hackers impersonated a Slack employee to steal the source code from the game company EA.

“Hacking as a Service” even exists for those willing to pay criminal enterprises on the dark web for it.

Hackers will search for any vulnerability in a system to infiltrate it and get what they want. The techniques they use include phishing, spoofing, scams, ransomware and more.

For this reason, companies of all sizes must meet relevant security accreditations and go further, continuously learning and adapting to the next possible threataccording to ALE, which discussed the issue with UC Today in July of this year.

However, hacking is not all doom and gloom. The word can also have positive connotations.

Running since 2014, TADHack (Telecom Applications Developer Hackathon) is the world’s largest telecom app development hackathon. The virtual event includes teams from cities around the world in an overnight hacking session solve real problems using telecom solutions.

The next TADHack will take place on 15–16 October 2022, with a prize pool of $20k. There is an additional $5k prize for the best hack using Radisys, one of the headline sponsors.