We need simple hardware switches for camera and microphone!
Even Mark Zuckerberg puts tape over his webcam
41–50 of 67 posts
Re: Even Mark Zuckerberg puts tape over his webcam
#42My Logitech webcam has a built-in sliding mechanism to cover and uncover the camera lens. I doubt I would ever buy a webcam that does not have this. There should really be a blocking mechanism for laptop cameras as well.
Re: Even Mark Zuckerberg puts tape over his webcam
#43It's important to point out that Mark Zuckerberg has a much stronger interest in protecting his privacy than the average person. There is a legitimate expectation that an individual, entity or the government would try to hack his webcam or microphone. This shouldn't justify the practice for average Internet users like you and me, though there's no harm in doing it if it makes you feel safe.
"This shouldn't justify the practice for average Internet users"?
Why not? The cost is basically zero and the savings might be substantial. I do that on my laptops as well and advice those around me to do the same. If that looks paranoid or stupid for somebody, quick googling for hacked webcams will provide plenty of examples that the threat is real, even for an average user.
Re: Even Mark Zuckerberg puts tape over his webcam
#44As Eric Schmidt has put it: "If you have something that you don't want anyone to know, maybe you shouldn't be doing it in the first place." So if you don't want people to know you put a tape over your webcam, maybe you shouldn't do it. ;-)
"You have nothing to fear if you have nothing to hide" - Most commonly attributed to Joseph Goebbels in 1933.
That is not the problem with the statement, though.
Re: Even Mark Zuckerberg puts tape over his webcam
#45It's important to point out that Mark Zuckerberg has a much stronger interest in protecting his privacy than the average person. There is a legitimate expectation that an individual, entity or the government would try to hack his webcam or microphone. This shouldn't justify the practice for average Internet users like you and me, though there's no harm in doing it if it makes you feel safe.
This shouldn't justify the practice for average Internet users like you and me,
While it's true that most of us aren't at risk of a targeted attack from an unknown party as Zuckerberg is, we're all still under threat from huge sweeping scans of entire IP ranges, and some people are very much under threat of an attack from someone they're likely to know (eg a stalker). I don't think we should downplay the possibility of someone attacking your computer on the basis of not being a billionaire company founder; there are plenty of other reasons why people's computers are attacked.
though there's no harm in doing it if it makes you feel safe.
Putting tape over a webcam makes you safe from people snooping on your webcam. It's not theatre, it's not perception; it's actual, real safety. This is a rare example of a simple security measure that doesn't rely on how the user feels.
Re: Even Mark Zuckerberg puts tape over his webcam
#46I have found Micro Snitch to be very useful:
https://obdev.at/products/microsnitch/index.html
"This ultra-light menu bar application operates inconspicuously in the background. It monitors and reports any microphone and camera activity to help you figure out if someone’s spying on you."
Re: Even Mark Zuckerberg puts tape over his webcam
#47Wow - this is being flagged fast. Was near the top, now 2 minutes later, is down to 54 and dropping fast - wonder who is flagging this article?
Re: Even Mark Zuckerberg puts tape over his webcam
#48"No, government spies probably don't care what you're saying or doing in front of your computer."
This logic really annoys me. The implication is that it's not so bad that the govt. can violate privacy since most people have nothing to hide.
It's like saying censorship is not so bad since most people have nothing to say.
Re: Even Mark Zuckerberg puts tape over his webcam
#49This is totally normal and nothing new (like years). Companies of a certain breed who have product meetings for secret products routinely do this to the cameras and mics of the computers and phones of meeting attendees.
Blocking recording helps block leaks.
Re: Even Mark Zuckerberg puts tape over his webcam
#50Wow - this is being flagged fast. Was near the top, now 2 minutes later, is down to 54 and dropping fast - wonder who is flagging this article?
It's a stupid story.