4 ms·

It looks as if it's been in maintenance mode since the acquisition. Why is that?

randtrain34 5y ago
From https://keybase.io/blog/keybase-joins-zoom https://keybase.io/blog/keybase-joins-zoom > Initially, our single top priority is helping to make Zoom even more secure. Although the git graph looks like it's their only priority at the moment...
- throwaway984393 5y ago
  This PR release says the point was "Developing the Most Broadly Used Enterprise End-to-End Encryption Offering" (https://investors.zoom.us/news-releases/news-release-details/zoom-acquires-keybase-and-announces-goal-developing-most-broadly https://investors.zoom.us/news-releases/news-release-details...) Five months later, they announce their initial technical preview of E2E encryption (https://blog.zoom.us/zoom-rolling-out-end-to-end-encryption-offering/ https://blog.zoom.us/zoom-rolling-out-end-to-end-encryption-...) What usually happens after M&A is if the acquired product isn't a profit-maker, they "integrate" it into other products and it goes into maintenance mode, eventually to be sunset. If the product did make money, they'd re-brand it and keep development going... unless they have plans to integrate the product's core feature into a larger corporate product (Zoom) that a separate branded product would compete against internally. It seems like keybase has been eaten and absorbed into the Zoom app, and the rest will be flushed.
melony 5y ago
They were acquired to appease investors/public relations during the explosive pandemic growth phase when a multitude of security issues were uncovered.
modeless 5y ago
Because Zoom only wanted the employees and the appearance of caring about encryption and didn't care about the product.
- bpodgursky 5y ago
  It's entirely possible they genuinely cared about encryption for their own product, and didn't give two hoots about the Keybase product.
  - paholg 5y ago
    If they genuinely cared, they would have started a lot sooner.
    - jenny91 5y ago
      Or they suddenly had a lot of reason to start caring more, and the best way to get competent people onto improving security was an acquihire?
    - surajrmal 5y ago
      Are they not allowed to shift priorities as they grow? I'm sure there are many things you genuinely care for these days which wouldn't have been true a few years ago. It would be dismissive for me to assert you don't truly care about those things, would it not?
    - nvr219 5y ago
      That's not fair. A lot of companies start off not caring about security because they just need to ship and grow. They add security later after they get owned or when they need to take on the type of customer that also genuinely care about security. Maybe they didn't care before and they care now. That's allowed.
      - verandaguy 5y ago
        I disagree. At this point, there's no real reason to just not care about security from day one. There's a wealth of tools and docs, and users are becoming more and more conscious (which is fantastic, for the record!). There's the obvious ethics of keeping the data your users entrust you with safe to the best of your abilities, too.

From https://keybase.io/blog/keybase-joins-zoom https://keybase.io/blog/keybase-joins-zoom > Initially, our single top priority is helping to make Zoom even more secure. Although the git graph looks like it's their only priority at the moment...

throwaway984393 5y ago
This PR release says the point was "Developing the Most Broadly Used Enterprise End-to-End Encryption Offering" (https://investors.zoom.us/news-releases/news-release-details/zoom-acquires-keybase-and-announces-goal-developing-most-broadly https://investors.zoom.us/news-releases/news-release-details...) Five months later, they announce their initial technical preview of E2E encryption (https://blog.zoom.us/zoom-rolling-out-end-to-end-encryption-offering/ https://blog.zoom.us/zoom-rolling-out-end-to-end-encryption-...) What usually happens after M&A is if the acquired product isn't a profit-maker, they "integrate" it into other products and it goes into maintenance mode, eventually to be sunset. If the product did make money, they'd re-brand it and keep development going... unless they have plans to integrate the product's core feature into a larger corporate product (Zoom) that a separate branded product would compete against internally. It seems like keybase has been eaten and absorbed into the Zoom app, and the rest will be flushed.

melony 5y ago

They were acquired to appease investors/public relations during the explosive pandemic growth phase when a multitude of security issues were uncovered.

modeless 5y ago

Because Zoom only wanted the employees and the appearance of caring about encryption and didn't care about the product.

bpodgursky 5y ago
It's entirely possible they genuinely cared about encryption for their own product, and didn't give two hoots about the Keybase product.
- paholg 5y ago
  If they genuinely cared, they would have started a lot sooner.
  - jenny91 5y ago
    Or they suddenly had a lot of reason to start caring more, and the best way to get competent people onto improving security was an acquihire?
  - surajrmal 5y ago
    Are they not allowed to shift priorities as they grow? I'm sure there are many things you genuinely care for these days which wouldn't have been true a few years ago. It would be dismissive for me to assert you don't truly care about those things, would it not?
  - nvr219 5y ago
    That's not fair. A lot of companies start off not caring about security because they just need to ship and grow. They add security later after they get owned or when they need to take on the type of customer that also genuinely care about security. Maybe they didn't care before and they care now. That's allowed.
    - verandaguy 5y ago
      I disagree. At this point, there's no real reason to just not care about security from day one. There's a wealth of tools and docs, and users are becoming more and more conscious (which is fantastic, for the record!). There's the obvious ethics of keeping the data your users entrust you with safe to the best of your abilities, too.