The Truth About Webcam Hacking – Special Review
Hacking web cams become no big deal now-a-days. Even script kiddies can easily do it if they have some software (I don’t want to mention it here).
But to my surprise many people still don’t believe that their web cams can be hacked. It is possible to hack or take control of your web cam without the hacker having personal contact with the system.
You can refer this from Tom’s Hardware and from BBC News.
So why the hell should they hack my web cam ?
Some people do it for fun. They don’t have any intention for doing all these things except for fun. And some people do it intentionally. They are often described as Black Hat Hackers. They are indecently called as Cyber Criminals. They do this for obtaining personal information or photos of the victim. Some people use this for peeping purposes.
So how to know whether my web cam is hacked or not ?
All webcams have at least a small light that comes ON when they are activated. They should be noticed. It means your webcam is watching you ! For laptops also, there is status LED for integrated webcam.
Can I prevent those web cam hacks ?
Webcams can be hijacked if you run an insecure system. Sensible use of applications will reduce the risks a lot. These are the basic steps :
- Firewall : The first and foremost thing is to enable your firewall. This makes accessing more difficult for hackers. You can also try Zone Alarm for sophisticated firewall.
- Anti-virus : Make sure you have a good anti-virus and update it properly to prevent such hacks. But remember, your anti-virus is not enough for fighting spyware, which takes control of your peripherals(like webcam). Try Spybot Search And Destroy and Super Anti Spyware.
- WEP and WPA : Enable your WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy) and WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access). If you are using wireless router or wireless webcam enable your security key. Always enable the highest security encryption possible.
- Downloads : Be careful about what you download from your Instant Messaging client, like Yahoo ! Messenger, MSN, AOL and many more.
- Modesty Shield : Web cam like Logitech Quickcam comes with a modesty shield. This is a visor which flips down over the lens when you don’t want the camera to see anything.
Some Web cam hack cases :
A Middle-aged man from Cyprus has been arrested for hacking the webcam of a teenage girl, with the intention to take illicit and compromising pictures of the girl in her bedroom.
This Nicosia computer technician infected the girl’s computer with a Trojan to spy on her. The suspect is said to have taken pictures of the girl and threatened her with e-mailing the pictures to all of her e-mail contacts if she didn’t stand nude in front of the camera. The girl wasn’t having any of it, though, and contacted the police.
This is not the first offence of its nature. Many are adopting similar techniques. A Spanish computer science student was fined by a Spanish court for a similar offence like this.
Another one. But same intention ! 
A 23-year old student has been caught using his hacker skills, or more specifically, installing some dodgy software applications in order to spy on unsuspecting women using their own webcams.
Craig Matthew Feigin is a student at the University of Florida who was known for also fixing computers if they had a problem. One woman, named Marisel Garcia, had Craig recommended to her by a friend when her laptop started playing up. He took the machine away for the night and brought it back working the next day.
Everything seemed fine, except that every time she went near her machine a little light came on and it also started using the battery a lot quicker.
She got a close friend who knew about computers to come and check it over. They found 2 extra pieces of software installed on the machine called Web Cam Spy Hacker and Log Me In. Craig had clearly been spying on Marisel without her knowledge and uploading the pictures to a remote server.
A quick trip to the authorities and Craig confessed to not only spying on Marisel, but also up to nine other women whose machines he had fixed. In Marisel’s case, he had compiled over 20,000 pictures of her in different states of dress, as well as with her friends and boyfriend.
Craig is now in custody and faces a number of charges coming under the Florida Statute of Offences against computer users.
Source : www.geek.com
Simple solution From Author : Unplug the web cam when you are not using it.
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That’s why I’m not using webcam. I’ve a webcam. But still in box.
Lets invent a gadget to replace web cams !
no need any new gadgets guys we shld not be afraid of any one… just thing is we shld gain some knowledge abt these things which hackers do and then simply we can prevent them……….
I think it is better to learn Ethical Hacking !
It will be very useful in such situations ! …
good info for who dont know this…..keep it up…
Thanks bobby !
could you plz tell me that what is a “keylogger”?
A keylogger creates a log of everything typed into a keyboard (every keystroke). It is used both for security and black hat purposes ! ..
thanx for the reply.i wanna ask you two questions:
1.as you hav said that keylogger is for black hat purposes..wot is that black hat purpose?
2.my antivirus program detect a virus y’day and the name was ADSPY/Adspy.gen and it was located in program files\DAEMON tools\setup DTSB.exe.
the object was setup DTSB.exe.
could you plz tell me that what harmful effects this virus can give?
iam worried.plz reply me as soon as possible
Hey Shivani I’m very sorry !
I forgot this comment buddy ! (I was in such a position)
Ok here is the answer…
1. Black hat purposes mean breaking into computers and networks, hacking passwords and anything that is illegal in computer field.
2. It would better to uninstall Daemon tools and reinstall it (This time download it from safe site).
Try to delete that file manually…
I don’t know about the side effects much ! Hope it causes normal problems.. like crashing..
Feel free to ask any questions about this !
Thank you very much Mr. Pradeep for replying to me. if in future,i face any problem regarding my computer ill ask to you.again thanks! n all the best!.
but i,ve already deleted the virus wen my antivirus detected it.is dere still need of downloading daemon tools?
Shivani. If you need Daemon Tools you can have it !
All I request is to download it from a safe site ! (E.g. http://www.download.com)
I’m very glad that you considered me for this issue ! Cheers ! ..
I also have a little blue light next to my webcam. But I’ve always wondered if that can’t be hacked too?
Always best to cover the lens, I suppose.
Yes, it is always better to cover the lens or disconnect the webcam !
I came across a website whilst doing some research that actually claims to be able to this,
What do you guys think? Do you have to be a genius or can you just use software like this:
http://www.webcamhack.net
Hmm, see hacking webcam is not a big thing now-a-days, even a script kiddie can do it by reading a book or a tutorial in net..
And, don’t attempt to do such things ! Hope you read above mentioned case studies !
I would say this is a nice way to SCAM people as the title of the website itself pulls the trigger of our mind
So dont believe these things and simply use the “X” close button when you end up websites like these.
- Robin
Well I don’t care using webcams. The reason is, I use Linux. No dumbass would think of installing some s/w or dumb script on my machine because I always can see course of that script and I just don’t d/l any useless binaries… :-p
Yes Nirmal, Linux users are blessed !
But sometimes, well skilled hackers play with webcam softwares too.. so that might rise an issue !
Ofcourse, Linux do have viruses and keyloggers. It is possible to hijack the whole machine virtually and surf through the directories when you use out dated linux distro’s or some vulnerable distro.
Compare to windows in security, linux really the best !
I unplug my webcam every time after i use it
Well..that is the best prevention !
The length to which some guys will go 4 gals is just incredible.
Yeah.. they show their dark side…
conducting private shows for fun and loosing the privacy.. it happens. Living techy is not a matter.. living secure environment really matters.
Yeah.. better be secure(safe) than sorry!
Always unplug your webcam when you are not using it. Or put tape over it. Simple solutions to big problems.
nice information i have choosen right place. thanks for sharing
I have a Dell Inspiron Mini, and my webcam’s light is on, i convered the lens with mascara, [me Miss Paranoid lol] but the light is STILL on, i tryed to use the webcam on my msn messenger, but it said ‘it has encountered a problem and needs to close’ so i obviously cant use it on msn… I went to my dell program, and it said i need to install a useable webcam? Idk.. but im scared, 0.o
I have malware bytes.. But it hasnt picked anything up yet [in the middle of a scan] What do io do *cry*
Don’t cry mate.. !
See.. if you have secure Internet Connection and a good anti-virus… you won’t be troubled.
And I think by default most of the laptops have some cover for in-built webcams.
Just recently i went on my webcam and normally the light is red when i am off and green when i am on but recently it is the opposite, when i am on my webcam the picture is now blurry and the light is red and there were sounds coming through my speakers which weren’t coming through from the other end.
Finally I got a really nice or we can say useful post. Thanks for sharing a lovely post.
nice article on Webcam Hacking, thanks for sharing.