Using the Waiting Room to Secure Your Zoom Meeting
This article covers updates to the Waiting Room defaults and how to use those settings to secure your Zoom meetings.
What settings are recommended for the Zoom Waiting Room?
The following Waiting Room settings are recommended for all Zoom meetings:
- Waiting Room is enabled
- Only Users not in your account (i.e., non-CSUF participants) will be sent to the waiting room
- Only hosts and co-hosts can admit participants from the waiting room
- During the meeting, if a host or co-host invites a person, that person will bypass the waiting room when joining the meeting
- People in the waiting room can reply to chats sent by hosts and co-hosts
Starting at the end of the Fall 2025 semester, the above settings will be set as defaults for all new Zoom meetings. However, you will be able to manually adjust these settings for individual meetings.
Why are these settings important?
There has been an increase in reports of uninvited and bot accounts joining Zoom meetings, even when the host is not present. Setting up a Waiting Room for all of your Zoom meetings ensures that any uninvited/bot accounts are safely kept in the waiting room until you remove them (or admit them to the meeting if they are a valid participant).
How do I apply these settings?
1. Log in to Zoom (either on the web or the desktop client).
2. Select Meetings and then click Schedule a Meeting under Upcoming.
In the desktop client, simply click Schedule on the Home tab.
- Select Meetings in the left menu.
- Then click Schedule a Meeting under Upcoming.
3. Scroll down to the Security section and place a checkmark next to Waiting Room to enable it. Then choose to use your Zoom web portal settings for the waiting room or select the specific waiting room settings you want for this meeting.
- Enable the Waiting Room.
- Then choose to use your current Zoom web portal settings or to set different settings for this meeting.
- If you choose to set different waiting room settings, select who you want to go to the waiting room for this meeting:
- Everyone: sends all participants to the waiting room. Only hosts/co-hosts will bypass the waiting room.
- Users not in your account: sends all participants who are not signed in with a CSUF Zoom account to the waiting room.
- Users who are not in your account and not part of your whitelisted domains: sends all participants who are not signed in with a CSUF Zoom account or who are not part of a group/domain that have been allowed to bypass the waiting room to the waiting room.
- Users not on the meeting invite: sends all participants who are not on the meeting invite to the waiting room.
It's recommended that you use the Zoom web portal to change your Waiting Room settings as the desktop client does not allow you to choose who can bypass the Waiting Room; it will automatically send everyone to the waiting room.
1. Log in to Zoom on the web.
2. Select Meetings, and then choose Upcoming. Hover your mouse over the meeting you want to edit, and then click on the Edit button when it appears.
- Select Meetings.
- Then choose Upcoming.
- Hover your mouse over the meeting you want to edit.
- Then click on the Edit button when it appears.
3. If this is a recurring meeting, click Edit Entire Series.
4. Scroll down to the Security section and place a checkmark next to Waiting Room to enable it. Then choose to use your Zoom web portal settings for the waiting room or select the specific waiting room settings you want for this meeting.
- Enable the Waiting Room.
- Then choose to use your current Zoom web portal settings or to set different settings for this meeting.
- If you choose to set different waiting room settings, select who you want to go to the waiting room for this meeting:
- Everyone: sends all participants to the waiting room. Only hosts/co-hosts will bypass the waiting room.
- Users not in your account: sends all participants who are not signed in with a CSUF Zoom account to the waiting room.
- Users who are not in your account and not part of your whitelisted domains: sends all participants who are not signed in with a CSUF Zoom account or who are not part of a group/domain that have been allowed to bypass the waiting room to the waiting room.
- Users not on the meeting invite: sends all participants who are not on the meeting invite to the waiting room.
5. Be sure to click Save when you are done making changes to the meeting.
1. Log in to Zoom on the web.
2. Click on the Settings menu on the left.
3. Select Meeting and then choose Security.
- Select Meeting.
- Then choose Security.
4. Ensure that the Waiting Room option is enabled. Then click Edit Options.
- Ensure that the Waiting Room option is enabled.
- Then click Edit Options.
5. Review and adjust the Waiting Room Options you want to set as your default for new Zoom meetings that you schedule.
Remember that you will be able to manually change these options for individual Zoom meetings that you schedule.
- Choose who should go into the Waiting Room.
- Everyone: sends all participants to the waiting room. Only hosts/co-hosts will bypass the waiting room.
- Users not in your account: sends all participants who are not signed in with a CSUF Zoom account to the waiting room.
- Users who are not in your account and not part of your whitelisted domains: sends all participants who are not signed in with a CSUF Zoom account or who are not part of a group/domain that have been allowed to bypass the waiting room to the waiting room.
- Users not on the meeting invite: sends all participants who are not on the meeting invite to the waiting room.
- Choose who can admit participants from the Waiting Room. It's recommended that you choose Hosts and co-hosts only.
- Choose the options you want under More Options.
- It is recommended that you enable Users invited during the meeting by the host or co-hosts will bypass the waiting room.
- It is also recommended that you enable Allow participants in the waiting room to reply to hosts and co-hosts. This will allow a participant to respond to your chat message if you ask them to clarify who they are (e.g., if their Zoom name shows just their initials, you can ask them to confirm who they are and they will be able to reply to you).
- Choose what happens if hosts and co-hosts are not present. Depending on the typical Zoom meetings that you schedule, you may want to enable both of these features so participants are sent back to the waiting room if the host/co-hosts leave the meeting.
6. Click Continue to save your changes.
7. You'll see a pop-up indicating your settings have been updated. You will also see the changes in the Waiting Room Options section.
- You'll see a pop-up indicating your settings have been updated.
- You will also see the changes in the Waiting Room Options section.
Need More Help?
Faculty/Staff - contact the IT Help Desk at [email protected] or 657-278-7777.
Students - contact the Student IT Help Desk at [email protected] or 657-278-8888.