Zoombomb

English

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Zoom +‎ bomb (to attack or annoy in the manner of a bombing). A reference to the Zoom video conference program, which became popular at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Compare Zoombombing.

Verb

Zoombomb (third-person singular simple present Zoombombs, present participle Zoombombing, simple past and past participle Zoombombed)

  1. To disrupt a video conference, often involving large numbers of trolls joining and displaying obscene material.
    • 2020 May 14, Kelly Tyko, “California church files class action lawsuit against Zoom after bible class 'Zoombombing'”, in USA TODAY[1]:
      The company says the new version of Zoom, which was released April 27, makes it harder for meetings to be Zoombombed with passwords and waiting rooms, which require passwords and a host to admit an attendee, being default settings.
    • 2022, N. K. Jemisin, The World We Make, Hachette, →ISBN:
      They are being Zoombombed by the Woman in White.

Derived terms

Noun

Zoombomb (plural Zoombombs)

  1. An instance of Zoombombing.
    Synonym: Zoombombing
    • 2020 March 20, Tressie Lieberman (quoted), Taylor Lorenz, “'Zoombombing': When Video Conferences Go Wrong”, in The New York Times[2]:
      We did encounter an unwanted 'Zoombomb' during one of our sessions so we moved our latest performances to a different platform.
    • 2022 October 26, Raul Villar Jr. (quoted), Joe McKendrick, “Corporate Culture In An Era When Employees Are No Longer Around”, in Forbes[3]:
      Ensuring our associates are able to cheer each other on from wherever they are drives connection and positivity throughout our organization. Even small things like Zoom bombs, coffee connects and a central place to get information goes a long way.