Prevent Zoom From Keeping Your Mac’s Microphone Open After a Call Ends
When a video call ends, there is always an initial worry: “I really left the meeting… can everyone hear me?” If you have successfully ended the conversation, you are usually safe and can continue any noisy activity without fear. However, there is a bug in Zoom that can shake you up, apparently keeping your Mac’s microphone active and open after the call has officially ended.
Back in December 2021 , Zoom users complained that their microphones remained active after a video call ended. How do all these users know that their microphones are open? Thanks to macOS Monterey privacy updates, you now see an orange dot in the menu bar next to Control Center. If you click on Control Center, you can even see which app is currently using the microphone. In these cases, Zoom was the culprit, not what you want to see after the call ends.
We currently have no reports of people on the other end of the line hearing their Mac colleagues after they leave a meeting. However, this bug is a concern; we trust these apps with the cameras and microphones of our devices. When we stop using their services, their access must stop. Even if it’s an innocent mistake, Zoom having access to the microphone after a call is a privacy violation, plain and simple. Fortunately, this violation has been corrected.
How to prevent Zoom from keeping your microphone active after a call
Zoom has released an update for this error, fixing the situation for now. On a Mac, you’ll find that Zoom version 5.9.3 no longer keeps the microphone open after a call ends. To update, open Zoom, click ” zoom.us ” in the top left corner of the menu bar, then click ” Check for Updates “. If you haven’t updated yet, 5.9.3 should appear. If you see the “You’re up to date” popup, you’re done and you probably have automatic updates installed (more on that below).
You can view what’s new, click ” Update ” then ” Install ” and then follow the on-screen instructions to install the update on your Mac. When you’re done, Zoom will restart and give you the option to automatically install new updates. If you want your Zoom client to always have the latest updates and fixes, check this box and click Finish.
[ 9to5Mac ]