Webex by Cisco is a video-calling application that provides screen sharing, video conferencing, and webinars. The Terms of Use clearly state that “All User Content is considered nonconfidential and public.” The Privacy Data Sheet discloses that Webex collects users’ personal information including names, email addresses, browsers, phone numbers, and mail addresses. The terms do not clearly state what categories of personal information are shared with third parties. The Privacy Data Sheet clearly states that no advertisements are served on the Webex Meetings platform, but they share personal information with third-party trackers to display advertisements on other sites and services. The terms clearly indicate that reasonable security measures are implemented to protecting the confidentiality of users’ personal information. The terms disclose that Webex does not knowingly collect personal information from children without parental consent.

Webex can be accessed through its website, and is available for download at the iOS App Store, and the Google Play Store. The Privacy Statement and Terms of Use used for this evaluation can be found on Webex’s website, iOS App Store, and the Google Play Store. Additionally, other policies used for this evaluation include: Privacy Data Sheet. This evaluation only considers policies that have been made publicly available prior to an individual using the application or service.

Safety

The Terms of Use disclose that users can participate in discussion forums, local communities, or chat rooms on Cisco websites, which is broadly available to others, indicating that users can interact with both trusted users and untrusted users. The terms do not disclose whether information must be disclosed in order to participate in social interactions. However, the Terms of Use clearly state that all user content is public. The terms do not disclose whether users have control over how their information is displayed to others. The Privacy Data Sheet clearly states that Webex does not monitor or interfere with meeting content. The terms do not clearly disclose whether individual forums and chat rooms are moderated.

Privacy

The Privacy Data Sheet clearly provides that the categories of Personal Information collected by Webex may include a user's: name, email address, password, browser, phone number, mailing address, avatar, user information included in a company's synced directory, and a unique user ID. The Privacy Statement informs users that Webex engages with third parties to collect personal information on Webex’s behalf, and that Webex may share personal information with third parties. However, the terms fail to disclose the categories of personal information shared with third parties.

The Privacy Statement clearly states that the purposes for sharing users’ personal information are to operate the business, improve, analyze, and customize websites and services, and to send marketing and other communications to users. The Privacy Data Sheet clearly indicates that Webex imposes contractual limits on how third parties can use personal information that the Webex shares to them. The Privacy Data Sheet and the Privacy Statement provide that Webex does not sell personal information of California consumers, but does not address whether Webex sells the personal information of other consumers. The Privacy Data Sheet clearly states that Webex does track user usage for advertising purposes across the internet, but that Webex does not serve advertisements on its platform.

Security

The terms do not clearly disclose whether an account is required to use Webex or whether a user’s account is protected by multi-factor authentication. The Privacy Data Sheet indicates that Customer users, or company users, can manage their employees Webex accounts. The Privacy Data Sheet clearly states that Webex "will confirm identification (typically with the email address associated with a Cisco account) before responding” to a privacy request. The Privacy Data Sheet clearly indicates that all third-party data processors are contractually required to provide the same level of security protections as Webex, and further states that “All Cisco sub-processors undergo a rigorous security and privacy assessment to confirm their compliance with our requirements.” The terms indicate that Webex protects the confidentiality of user’ information with reasonable security measures, including encryption and physical access controls. The Privacy Statement provides that if Webex learns of a security system’s breach, that Webex “may attempt to notify you by posting a notice on our websites, sending an email, or otherwise contacting you.”

Compliance

The Privacy Statement clearly states that users are provided with the options to access, correct, suppress, export or delete their personal information. The Terms of Use state that users can upload text, files, images, photos, video, sounds, software, works of authorship, and other materials, and that the user retains ownership rights to material uploaded. The Privacy Statement includes a section specifically designated for Children’s Privacy. However, the terms fail to disclose whether the product is intended to be used by children under the age of 13, or whether Webex ever knowingly collects personal information from children under the age of 13.

The Privacy Statement clearly states that "Cisco does not knowingly collect Personal Information form children without appropriate parental or guardian consent." The terms do not indicate whether a parent can consent to the collection and use of their child’s personal information without also consenting to the disclosure of the information to third parties, whether Webex responds to a parent’s request to prevent further collection of their child’s information, or whether Webex deletes personal information from a child under the age of 13 if collected without parental consent.