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As an alternative to a camera cover, use the camera indicator light to determine if your camera is active I've been thinking about privacy all wrong. I thought
by rgbrenner 6y ago
As an alternative to a camera cover, use the camera indicator light to determine if your camera is active
I've been thinking about privacy all wrong. I thought it was about preventing access to my data... but Apple has cleared up my misunderstanding and now I know that it's just about being notified when my data is stolen.
Everyone feel free to post your credit card numbers... your privacy is secure, since your bank will let you know in the form of a bill when it's accessed without your permission.
Thanks Apple!
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- coldtea 6y ago>I've been thinking about privacy all wrong. I thought it was about preventing access to my data... but Apple has cleared up my misunderstanding and now I know that it's just about being notified when my data is stolen. This comment makes absolutely zero sense in more ways than one. First, in the post Apple also says how you can control exactly which apps have access to the camera in the privacy settings. And, like, not give access to any, if you don't feel like so. Second, the green light is not about "notified when your data is being stolen" is about being informed if/when you are filmed. In which case, you can just close the lid, quit the app, or do anything you like to prevent it. Your reasoning is like arguing ironically against an alert vendor that "I thought the problem was getting my valuables stolen, but now the vendor has cleared up my misunderstanding and now I know that it's just about being notified when my valuables are stolen".
- elliekelly 6y agoYou’re missing the point. By the time the light is on it’s too late - your privacy has already been violated. Closing the lid only mitigates a camera privacy violation in progress. Covering the camera prevents the privacy violation from happening in the first place. One is a proactive measure and the other is reactive.
- KeepFlying 6y agoBut in those few moments between when I notice the light and when I close the app/lid, my data has been stolen already. If I'm in a compromising position, I don't want ANY footage of it to be created. If it is a so how frame or multiple seconds, I'm not okay with it. So being told that the notification light is equivalent to covering the camera entirely doesn't line up for me.
- blueblob 6y agoSo you're saying everyone should always be staring at their webcam to make sure the light is not on? It isn't like there's a subfield of Human Factors studying Cognitive load[1], saying that people don't do a good job at what you're saying people should do. Also, have you ever heard of a rootkit? [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_load https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cognitive_load
- Wowfunhappy 6y agoI always notice when the light goes on, because it's close to my screen, and effectively a form of movement in a place I don't usually see it. It's also quite bright on Apple computers. Is it different for other people?
- sokoloff 6y agoI’m sure it’s different for many other people who use a second, larger monitor.
- bravoetch 6y ago>> Is it different for other people? Yes. Many people leave the laptop on, and wander off to pee. Or they're jerking off with their eyes closed. Or they are using a different computer at the same time in a data-center. Or all of the above at once.
- krustyburger 6y agoThat’s some impressive multitasking.
- eanzenberg 6y agoMany people do the same things and forget to cover their webcam with a piece of plastic. What’s your point?
- dahfizz 6y agoSome people forget to lock their door sometimes. Should we remove the ability to have a lock on your front door?
- barrkel 6y agoBy the time the light comes on, the horse has left the barn.
- coldtea 6y agoNot really, the just have a few seconds of you. Unless you were naked at the moment or doing heroin in the background you can just close the lid or cover the camera then and there... I care about people filming me without me knowing. Not about someone trying to turn on my camera and me knowing immediately... If, of course, they can bypass the already present "you need to give an app explicit permission to film" protection...
- Wowfunhappy 6y agoAre you seeing the indicator light go on when you aren't actively using the webcam?
- GuardianCaveman 6y agoThe problem is if someone is able to activate your camera even if the light comes on 100 percent of the time, without a cover they’ll see something and will be able to capture that. Hey this guy hacked in and is seeing naked wife or my taxes on my desk or something else sensitive - the light isn’t really going to stop that. If you really don’t believe me go stay in a hotel next to defcon and use the hotel WiFi naked.
- dahfizz 6y agoDo you believe that zero days don't exist? You think your laptop is absolutely hack proof? A hacker isn't going to randomly burn their exploits, but that doesn't mean none exist.
- Wowfunhappy 6y agoI don't believe that zero days exist in a circuit, no. The LED is not software. You cannot power up the camera without powering up the LED.
- mirimir 6y agoIf Apple makes such high-end stuff, and is marketing on privacy, why can't they spring for hardware switches? Pine64 does, and they're by no means high-end. Not by price, anyway.
- Wowfunhappy 6y agoI don't think the price of a hardware switch would be a concern for Apple, but the size would. A hardware switch would take up space. Apple broke their keyboards to shave a couple millimeters of thickness off their laptops.
- waheoo 6y agoYou still have a silent mode toggle on your iphone. I think apple can figure out how to add a hardware switch for a camera/mic to a laptop without compromising thickness. It doesnt need to be a hardware cover, just a hardware killswitch to the circuit.
- Wowfunhappy 6y ago> You still have a silent mode toggle on your iphone. Yes, and it's one of, what, three moving parts left? Even the home button on the iPhone 7, 8, and 2020 SE is fake, it doesn't actually depress.
- waheoo 6y agoSo... ? Problem is people dont trust software. People want a hardwired fix.
- xfitm3 6y agoI think the removal of iphone buttons is for water resistance which I don't think applies to laptops.
- Wowfunhappy 6y ago
- hoka-one-one 6y agoActually it would be a huge security risk if everyone posted their CC numbers publicly. Attackers could use their numbers to make purchases, and by the time the purchases show up on the statement the money is already gone.
- coolspot 6y agoBanks don’t transfer money to CC merchants immediately - it happens later after the hold period is passed. Also transaction can be reversed via chargeback.
- baxter001 6y agoIs it not clear that they're not complaining about the literal situation of credit card breach, but rather using it as analogy to being informed of a breach after the fact?
- jackewiehose 6y ago>> As an alternative to a camera cover, use the camera indicator light to determine if your camera is active I don't care because I don't use Apple but I still feel very offended as a human being. WTF? How can they give such a disrespectful fuck-you response?
- fortran77 6y agoIf you notice that the light is on, you won't be faster than the speed of light when you run to cover it.
- Abishek_Muthian 6y agoTrue, Apple always knows what's best for its customers. 'It wouldn't let them shoot their own foot'[1]. [1]https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23797062 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=23797062