- Video conferencing is a powerful tool for businesses, freelancers, students, and groups who want to stay connected over long distances.
- A good video conferencing service should be safe, reliable, straightforward, and easy to use. It should make collaborating fun and productive.
- In our exhaustive test to find out the most safe and secure video conferencing platform conducted here at Electrons, Google Meet and Microsoft Teams topped the list.
Did You Know? Did you know that the first video conference took place in 1964, when AT&T unveiled their Picturephone at the New York World’s Fair? This device allowed users to see each other while they spoke on the phone.
Protect Your Meetings: The Top 5 Free Secure Video Conferencing Platforms in 2023
Contents
1. Google Meet
2. Microsoft Teams
3. Cisco Webex
4. Zoom Meetings
5. Jitsi Meet
How We Tested? We evaluated each free video conferencing platform for its security, functionality, features, and ease of use on our test device. After a detailed trial and error process, we came up with the top safe video conferencing tools for you to use.
OS Compatibility – Windows 11, Windows 10, Windows 8, Windows 7, Mac OS, Android, iOS, and Web.
1. Google Meet
High Video Quality: Google Meet is a powerful video conferencing tool that’s free for up to 100 participants and 60 minutes per meeting, with unlimited meetings. Screen sharing is simple, and the AI technology adapts to your network speed for high-quality video calls even in low light.
Encrypted Meetings: Google Meet video conferences are designed with security and privacy in mind. The video calls are encrypted while in transit, which ensures that your video conference is kept safe and secure and prevents any unauthorized access to it.
Strong Controls: As a host, you have control over your meeting, such as admitting or denying participants and muting or removing them. The Meet’s easy access, simple scheduling, recording, automatic live captioning, and adaptive layouts help you stay engaged and connected.
Rock-solid Infra: Meet is built on Google’s robust global infrastructure, which is renowned for its reliability and stability. It is subjected to independent verification of its security, privacy, and compliance controls on a regular basis, resulting in certifications and attestations of compliance.
Feature-rich: To start a meeting, just type “meet.new” into your browser. Google Meet also has impressive noise cancellation, custom background options, and screen blur. You can use it on most web browsers or through the Meet app for iOS and Android.
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2. Microsoft Teams
Unlimited Meetings: Teams, with the ability to support an unlimited number of group meetings, is ideal for businesses of all sizes. This secure platform offers video conferencing with up to 100 participants per meeting in the free version.
Standard Encryption: The platform employs standard encryption to protect your meetings and data, ensuring that your confidential information remains private. Microsoft is well-known for its enterprise-level security, owing to the company’s proactive and multi-layered security approach.
Easy-to-use: With Teams, you can easily schedule meetings and stay up-to-date with free chat and search capabilities. The platform also allows you to share your screen and collaborate on files with colleagues. The cool background blur feature reduces distractions during meetings, making sure that they run smoothly.
Versatile: Teams also provides hundreds of integrated apps and services, making it a versatile tool for businesses of all kinds. Furthermore, you can grant access to people outside your organization, facilitating seamless communication with clients and partners.
Very Accessible: Whether you join a meeting from a web browser or through the Teams application, which is available for Windows, macOS, iOS, and Android, the process is simple and hassle-free. While Teams is an excellent tool for remote work, there is always room for improvement.
Visit Site3. Cisco Webex
Powerful Tool: Cisco’s Webex Meetings is an impressive platform that allows you to host HD video meetings for up to 100 participants, with each session lasting up to 24 hours. Plus, there are no limits on the number of meetings you can have!
Secure Video Conferencing: Backed by Cisco’s networking expertise, Webex Meetings features top-notch security measures, including TLS 1.2 and AES 256-bit encryption, ensuring a smooth and secure performance.
Loaded with Features: Webex Meetings includes all the essential features you need to have a successful video conference, such as screen sharing, video recording, customizable video layouts, virtual backgrounds, breakout sessions, and more. The standout feature is its virtual whiteboard, which enables real-time collaboration with diverse tools.
Well-Integrated: It integrates seamlessly with third-party apps you use every day, so your work remains connected. Webex Meetings even assigns you a personal URL that you can use to manage all your meetings and schedule video conferences.
Cross-Platform: Webex Meetings is highly customizable and can be used for webinars, town halls, training, or remote support. It is available on Windows, Mac, iOS, and Android, so no matter what device you prefer, you can always join in the conversation.
Visit Site4. Zoom Meetings
End-to-End Encryption: Zoom has come a long way in terms of security since it was plagued by issues due to a surge in free users. Now, the platform provides end-to-end encryption with the 256-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), ensuring the safety of your communications.
Decent Limits: Zoom allows you to host meetings with up to 100 participants for 40 minutes. There is no limit to the number of meetings you can host, which is excellent for those who need to hold multiple meetings.
Advanced Video Features: The platform includes several essential features, such as phone call support, screen sharing, webinars, HD video/audio, virtual whiteboard, and host controls. Additionally, it also has advanced features like active speaker view, simultaneous screen share, virtual background, raise hand, and more.
Record and Review: Zoom’s ability to record your meetings as either local or cloud-based files with searchable transcripts is one of the most useful features of the platform. This means you can review your meetings after they’re over to ensure that you didn’t miss any important details. Also, the meeting invitations integrate seamlessly with popular calendaring systems, making it easy to schedule and join meetings.
Use on Any Device: Participants can join meetings via the web, standalone applications, and mobile devices using iPhone and Android apps. And if you need to turn a meeting into a one-on-one call, it’s quick and easy to do so. The platform even includes waiting rooms and breakout rooms, so you can keep your meetings organized and on track.
Visit Site5. Jitsi Meet
Most Secure Platform: Jitsi Meet has gained recognition from privacy advocates as one of the most secure video conferencing services available. Its fully encrypted platform ensures that users can conduct video calls and online meetings without the risk of interception or monitoring by unauthorized parties.
No Time Limit: With Jitsi Meet, you can invite up to 75 participants for an unlimited duration, all without needing to download anything or create an account. Just hop on via your browser, and you’re ready to go. And with its custom URL feature, sharing a link with your team is as simple as can be.
User-Friendly: This secure video conferencing platform is more than just user-friendly. It boasts a modern interface that makes sharing your desktop, presentations, and other media a breeze. And with crystal-clear audio and video quality, you won’t have to worry about any distractions or misunderstandings during your conference.
Resourceful: Jitsi Meet has a range of features to enhance the virtual meeting experience, including background blur to keep the focus on the conversation. It also offers lock-protected rooms, tile view, host controls, screen recording, YouTube broadcasting, third-party app integration, and a raise your hand feature.
Open-Source: For those looking to take their privacy to the next level, Jitsi Meet is 100 percent open-source. This means that advanced users and small businesses can host their own Jitsi service, keeping their conversations private and maintaining ownership of their call data. The apps are available for both iOS and Android.
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Skype is very much a household name, which will serve as a strong draw from many people. It’s Meet Now version is made exclusively for team video conferencing and supports up to 100 participants for a 24 hour duration.
WhatsApp provides the best in class security when it comes to video calling. Its end-to-end encryption is a relief for any security-conscious video caller. Currently, WhatsApp allows group video call with up to 32 people.
FaceTime, Apple’s built-in video and voice-calling app, is likely familiar to iPhone and MacBook users. With full encryption and the ability to support group video calls with up to 32 participants, it’s a reliable way to stay connected.
JioMeet is pretty similar to Zoom. It can be used for 1:1 video calls and hosting meetings with up to 30 participants with enterprise-grade host controls.
Zoho Meeting is a secure online meeting platform and webinar solution. It enables individuals and teams to work together productively, making it an ideal solution for those seeking new ways to work remotely.
Feel Like You’re There
It’s a scientific fact that communication is more effective when you can see the person you’re talking to.
I recommend trying a few of the above-listed video conferencing services before committing to a particular one. Try out some of the features to figure out what you really need and what’s overkill.
Now, be anywhere, reach anyone.
Did You Know?
Did you know that in 1970, NASA used video conferencing to communicate with the astronauts aboard the Apollo 11 mission? This was one of the first instances of video conferencing being used for critical communication.
Author: Nik is an experienced author with 14 years in software and tech, holding an IT Engineering degree and a Data Science Master's from Liverpool University. Disclaimer: This website's content is created by humans and refined by AI for better grammar, flow, and clarity.
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