Our reporting on Apple’s warning against closing a MacBook with a webcam cover installed (see “Don’t Close Your MacBook with a Webcam Cover Attached,” 14 July 2020) sparked an interesting TidBITS Talk discussion about Mac webcam security.
In theory, malware can’t activate your Mac’s webcam without your knowledge, because the indicator light is wired in series to the webcam. That means the webcam cannot receive power without turning on the light. An earlier webcam implementation in pre-2008 Apple laptops was vulnerable to a firmware exploit, but a lengthy treatise by John Gruber of Daring Fireball quotes an unnamed Apple engineer as saying that this exploit is now impossible, because the connection is direct. No malware can bypass basic electrical connections.
Nothing’s Perfect
With Micro Snitch (was NOYB) there’s no doubt whether an application records audio through your Mac’s built-in microphone or if the camera captures video. This ultra-light menu-bar application operates inconspicuously in the background. With Micro Snitch there’s no doubt anymore. 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. Fair enough, you might see the camera’s indicator light, but what if you are away from your computer? With Micro Snitch you always know whether some app is currently using your microphone and its logging facilities allow you to reveal any suspicious activities later on. Menu Bar Icon — Any current microphone or camera activity is displayed in the menu bar. The menu also shows a list of connected audio/video devices. Know when someone spies on you! Quickly annotate screenshots, photos and other images with your pen, touch, or mouse and save, paste or share with other apps.
Or so we think. The problem with any sort of “unbreakable” security scheme is that there are a lot of bad guys out there, and security breaches have real monetary value to organized crime and government surveillance agencies. One TidBITS Talk reader pointed out that a clever attacker could use the webcam to take quick still images, flashing the indicator light so quickly that you might not even notice it.
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Even if Apple’s webcam security is foolproof, what about third-party webcams? Built-in Mac webcams aren’t very high-quality (see “The 2020 MacBook Air’s FaceTime HD Camera Is Still Lousy,” 8 April 2020), so many people who rely on videoconferencing (a number that has skyrocketed during the COVID-19 pandemic) have a third-party camera attached.
The reality is that you probably don’t have much to fear from your webcam, because even years ago it would have taken a targeted attack to access it. But there’s something about having an electronic eye pointed at you all day long that can make you feel like you’re being watched…
Micro Snitch to the Rescue
If you’d like a little extra peace of mind, consider installing Micro Snitchfrom Objective Development, makers of LaunchBar and the famous Little Snitch network monitoring utility. Micro Snitch costs $3.99 either directly from Objective Development or in the Mac App Store, and Objective Development makes a free trial available.
Micro Snitch lives in your Mac’s menu bar. Whenever an app accesses your webcam or microphone, a large, square icon of a hat and glasses appears in the center of your screen and then moves to the lower-right corner. You also receive a notification. The hat and glasses icon doesn’t go away until you close it or the activity stops.
Afraid that you somehow missed the little spy guy? Choose Open Activity Log from Micro Snitch’s menu bar icon to see a log of every time either the camera or the microphone has been accessed.
The only downside I can find is that Micro Snitch can’t monitor some of the odd software devices I have installed, like Soundflower (which lets me reroute audio on my Mac) and the EpocCam driver that promised to let me use my iPhone as a webcam—I was planning a review, but recent security changes to Zoom and Skype prevented it from working. I recommend being careful about installing such drivers, and I’ve now uninstalled EpocCam. Soundflower, on the other hand, is now open source.
If your webcam causes you any anxiety, $3.99 for Micro Snitch is a small investment for additional peace of mind. Give it a try, and let us know if it reveals any unexpected behavior on your Mac!
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Know when someone spies on you!
Ever wondered if an application records audio through your Mac’s built-in microphone without your knowledge? Or if the camera captures video for no good reason?
With Micro Snitch there’s no doubt anymore. 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.
Fair enough, you might see the camera’s indicator light, but what if you are away from your computer? Wizard of oz temple run. And for the microphone there is no activity indication at all, so you won’t notice if the microphone is turned on even if you’re sitting right in front of your Mac.
Firefox install on mac windows 10. With Micro Snitch you always know whether some app is currently using your microphone, and its logging facilities allow you to reveal any suspicious activities later on.
Menu Bar Icon
Any current microphone or camera activity is displayed in the menu bar. The menu also shows a list of connected audio/video devices.
Overlay
An on-screen overlay is shown while the microphone or camera is turned on to make sure you won’t miss it even if the menu bar isn’t currently visible.
Logging
Never miss any microphone or camera activity, even in your absence. Every status change is logged to a file, so you can review it later to find suspicious activities. Graphpad prism 7 serial number generator.
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What Is Micro Snitch
Follow Micro Snitch on Twitter to get informed about new versions, tips and other news.