Is there a difference on the Mac side of things?
Does Android and iPhone deal with this in the same way or differently?
In: Technology
PC, Mac, Android, and iPhone are all computers, but are built in significantly different ways.
On a cell phone, the camera is a built in component of the device, so the operating system has some level of control over it. This means you have security by being able to control what programs do with it. We all have experienced “do you want to allow this app access to your camera?” An added benefit is it is possible that those limiting controls on the camera have a hardware level protection. In principle, This means that you cannot upload software (as hackers commonly do) to get around it.
By contrast, on a PC, a camera is a USB peripheral, which is designed to allow any software to easily access it and use it. There is no consideration of tightly controlling access. Even if your operating system did try to add some control, it doesn’t change the fact that USB format is designed to be easily shared, making it easier to get ahold of.
Your hardware level protection for your USB webcam is to cover the lens with a piece of paper or tape. Software can’t get around that.
In addition, PC’s are generally the easiest computers to hack. Windows is the most common operating system, so the most effort is spent learning to hack it. Moreover, Windows has very little in the way of security protections.
Once you hack into a PC, there is no camera specific security to stop you from using the camera.
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