30 Of The Most Embarrassing Zoom Meeting Disasters

By Sophie 9 months ago

1. CEO Becomes Potato Head

image source: insider.com
CEO Lizet Ocampo brought joy to her colleagues when she accidentally turned on the potato filter during a conference call. Shocked by the seemingly new addition to the team, staff members could not stop laughing as she tried to hold a serious meeting. She decided to keep the filter when she realized, it was just too funny!

2. "I'm Not A Cat"

image source: standard.co.uk
During a trial a lawyer accidentally turned on the cat filter as he attended an online hearing. He had no idea how to use Zoom, and he had to get his assistant to help him to turn it off! It took a while for them to figure it out, and he had to state that he's "not a cat", in order to ensure his case was taken seriously. Not sure they'd let felines in the dock...

3. Ding Dong!

image source: standard.co.uk
At first glance there appears to be nothing wrong with this girl's Zoom square, however look at bit closer and you'll see that she is revealing a bit too much! Those who judge people based on their bookshelves will have a lot to unpick here, as she appears to take pride in her noble steed!

4. Dad Bod

image source: standard.co.uk
No matter how old you are, dads always have a way of embarrassing you. Reporter Jessica Lang's father went full dad-mode when he walked into her video, flashing his belly has he was getting dressed. If that isn't a sign to move out then we don't know what is...

5. Work From Bed

image source: reddit.com
This guy made the big screen during a meeting held in a room full of people. As he tried to press audio, he unfortunately pressed video instead and revealed his office set up - which, by the way, is most of us when we're working from home. What's the point in getting dressed?!

6. Jackie Weaver

image source: reddit.com
The infamous Jackie Weaver. If you haven't seen this video then you must've been under a rock. A local council meeting in England turned into carnage when members began shouting at each other over a disagreement. Jackie Weaver decided it was time to give people the boot to which another member responded "You have no authority here, Jackie Weaver!"

7. The Jeffrey Toobin Scandal

image source: reddit.com
Writer for The New Yorker (well, ex-writer) Jeffrey Toobin made a grave error whilst on a Zoom conference call with some of the big wigs of the company. Believing he was off camera, he began, let's say, enjoying himself a little too much. Little did he realize that everyone could see him! He was sacked and later apologized, but we're unsure if he could ever redeem himself.

8. Green Screen

image source: metro.co.uk
This guy came up with the genius idea of dressing in a green morph suit to make him invisible in the background of his partner's Zoom calls. He paraded around thinking that nobody could see him but as you can see, he failed. Someone tell him that's not how green screen works!

9. Awkward...

image source: iheart.com
Just when you think you're being a studious colleague, doing anything not to miss the meeting so you take your phone in the bathroom with you. Unfortunately, this lady forgot to turn off her camera as she used the toilet, and relieved herself in front of her colleagues! The second hand embarrassment is painful.

10. Hi Kids!

image source: theverge.com
Our kids bursting in on an important call can happen to the best of us, it just doesn't usually happen live on national television. The hilarious moment when this news reporter's children run into to his WFH report is heart warming and relatable as they take the limelight. Kids are fun!

11. Remember To Mute!

image source: reddit.com
Having to quarantine during the Covid-19 pandemic, meant that many students had to take their classes at home. They'd be taught via Zoom with the rest of their classmates, so each room was pretty big. One of these classes saw a girl having a rant to her mother, about how poorly the teacher was taking the class, but she'd forgotten to mute her microphone. The whole class heard how she felt and we bet that anger turned to embarrassment!

12. An Unsupportive Chair

image source: reddit.com
One of the downsides to working from home is that you may have to deal with less than perfect furniture. Chloe Kozinets from California found this out the hard way, as she fell from her chair during a meeting with the CEO of her company. She published the evidence on TikTok and it's hilarious!

13. Smart Up Top, Party In The Bottom

image source: reddit.com
Good Morning America viewers were in for a treat when presenter Will Reeve did as we all do when working from home; he wore no pants. Unfortunately he did this during a broadcast and his faux pas was revealed by a very unfortunate camera angle which saw him dressed formally only from the waist up!

14. Dog Makes An Uninvited Appearance

image source: reddit.com
Rob Glover took to Twitter to sound off about an unfortunate mishap, as he tried to teach a class via Zoom. Rob hadn't realized that his dog was also interested in what he had to say, as he joined the call in the background. Not only this, the pooch decided to vomit all over his rug, causing one of his students to private message him. Dogs always steal the spotlight!

15. Always Check Your Messages Before Sending

image source: reddit.com
Direct messages can be a great way to discuss the meeting you're on or the class that you're in, but make sure you do what this person didn't and check that the messages are, in fact, direct! Victor's friend accidentally messaged the whole meeting to complain about class; we can only imagine the horror!

16. Ready For Your Close Up!

image source: reddit.com
It's so tempting when on a Zoom meeting to look at your own square to see how you come across, but it appears that this teacher failed to do that. If he had, he would've zoomed out before anyone was able to take a screenshot. It was too little too late and the memory will last forever.

17. Never Trust A Fart

image source: reddit.com
Another mishap involving the mute button (or lack of), is when this guy thought his colleagues couldn't hear him when he let out a ginormous fart, much to the dismay of the rest of the Zoom room. We just hope that no one saw he was unmuted so he could get away with it!

18. Forgetting To Leave

image source: reddit.com
Just saying goodbye doesn't mean the end of a Zoom call - you actually have to leave for it to be completely over. No one told this guy about the 'leave' button, as he outed himself for not wearing pants. He seemed to have an uncomfortable back side as his colleagues watched him walk away, oblivious to the fact that his camera was still on.

19. Save The Squirrel!

image source: youtube.com
It's inevitable that home life will get involved somehow when you're teaching from home, and that's exactly what happened to Mrs. Morgan and her students. Midway through class, her daughter entered with a wild squirrel after saving it from her cat, much to the joy of her second graders!

20. Mmm... Toast

image source: youtube.com
Second grade teachers haven't had much luck with Zoom, as this teacher's internet cut out causing her to be kicked out of her class. The students realize that they're being recorded and decide that they should behave. That all goes out of the window when someone mentions toast which starts an in depth discussion. Check it out on YouTube!

21. Get The Right Message Across

image source: reddit.com
When you're choosing your background, make sure that you can fit into the frame nicely without obscuring it too much. This executive did not consider the implications of choosing this positive affirmation, as with her head blocking some letters it looked as though she worked for a very different company indeed!

22. The Upside Down Congressman

image source: insider.com
During a serious committee meeting, congressman Tom Emmer had somehow managed to appear on video upside down, with no idea how to fix it. He took it in his stride by tweeting a screenshot of the incident, stating that he is "not a cat", in relation to the previous day's faux pas with the lawyer-turned-feline Rod Pontin.

23. Don't Forget Your Filters

image source: nypost.com
This priest live streamed mass during the Covid-19 pandemic; a great gesture during a difficult time. It would be difficult to take him seriously though as he hadn't realized that he had hilarious filters on his face throughout the ceremony, creating more of a comedy sketch than a virtual spiritual gathering!

24. What's New, Pussycat?

image source: bbc.co.uk
MP John Nicolson's segment on the BBC was rudely interrupted by his cat, who waltzed into the shot and became the center of attention. It was promptly moved away, however it was not moved quick enough as we were too focused on the ginger tail to pay attention to what he was saying!

25. Making An Appearance

image source: reddit.com
If you live with someone who is also working from home, then best to treat the house like a real office, with real people. Christina Kerby failed to do this as she walked into one of her husband's Zoom calls, butt-naked after a shower. Best to fetch a towel before you undress!

26. Is That Danny DeVito?

image source: bubblestranslation.com
We're not sure you can call this one a fail; the kid's a genius! During class he changed his background to a picture of Danny DeVito and promptly left the Zoom square. This led his teacher to ask "who changed themselves into Danny DeVito?!", as the kid's mom listened from the next room.

27. Kitty Colleague

image source: reddit.com
Working from home has the added benefit of having your pet as a colleague, and you can't just ignore your colleagues, right? Well, unfortunately it seems you're expected to if they're the feline kind, as Daniel Taroy found out when he was talking to his cat unmuted. His actual colleagues found it hilarious!

28. Terrible Threes!

image source: reddit.com
Jenna Weiss-Berman experienced the unpredictability of her toddler when he barged in on her Zoom meeting. As CEO of a company, professionalism is expected, however it's difficult to be professional when your 3 year old shouts "look at my penis!" to yourself and your colleagues!

29. Trouble In Paradise

image source: reddit.com
One person wrote to an advice column to ask whether or not they should reach out to a colleague who was heard having a fight with their spouse over Zoom. The unnamed person didn't realize their mic was on and had to be muted by the chair of the meeting. Awkward!

30. Sharing Is Caring

image source: youtube.com
Whenever you share a screen you must be extra careful to share only what is intended. One guy learned this the hard way as his search history was revealed when he started typing into Google. Unfortunately he'd searched for some pretty inappropriate things and was left very red-faced!