Why the big bosses of technology cover the laptop camera?

Mark Zuckerberg and the director of the FBI stick tape on the computer. And maybe you should too.

              

What was the stuff of paranoid right now became the rule among experts technology. This week, Mark Zuckerberg posted a picture celebrating the number of users of Instagram - 300 million users access the app every day. But in the background of the image, the protagonist was the computer of the founder of Facebook.

Several Twitter users have noted that, upon the Zuckie MacBook camera, has a piece of tape. On the side where are the built-in computer microphones, plus a bit of electrical tape.

Before becoming CEO of one of the largest social networks in the world, Zuckerberg enjoyed hacking in college. If he, better informed than us mere mortals, adhered to the adhesive, even is it an idea so paranoid?

The FBI director thinks not. James Comey said in a press conference this year, he saw "a more intelligent person he" cover the camera. So it was there and did the same.

Reason to worry about it abound. The Ghostnet, group of Chinese hackers broke into 2,000 cameras in 103 countries. Other 73,000 webcams were attacked in 2013.

How do they do it? It depends on your type of camera. The most vulnerable are those that have wireless connection to the computer. They have their own IP address and connect via Wi-Fi Without a strong password, it is easy to have access to the webcam images. - And most users forget to change the default password of the product.

Older cameras connected by USB and the newer, embedded in the laptop, are less vulnerable but can be accessed via malware - the famous computer viruses, which can be purchased with that episode corrupted series that you downloaded by torrent or the classic e-mail attachment asfotosdafestaficaramotimas.exe.

These webcams are accompanied by LED lights that signal when the camera is on - if it flashes randomly unused, may be an intrusion signal. If this happens on a computer that has Windows as Operating System, it is worth doing the following: Restart the computer and wait 10 minutes to see if the light continues to flash. In this case, start the Task Manage, click the Processes tab and look for the name "winlogon.exe". If it appears more than once, run to disconnect the internet and scan with a virus throughout the system.

In some situations, however, it can not do: the very FBI has proven that it is possible to break into and hack the camera without turning on the LED.

Worse, you can even be inviting this kind of vulnerability into the house. Systems that automate and integrate different appliances at home, like Amazon Echo, only respond as well to voice commands because they hear literally everything you say. There are people saying until he had moments calientes ~ ~ rebounding in porn site because he had the camera SmarTV the hacked room.

The internet is full of "manual for beginners" to invade webcams, and the reasons range from fun to jealousy in the relationship. This tutorial teaches you to hide viruses in seemingly innocent attachments, install remote control software of other people's computer and take control of the camera. Have to avoid being caught unaware, the board of the same site is one, nothing technological and completely offline: Use duct tape.

You hardly, normal user, has much to lose from a hacker attack that hears and sees what is done in front of the computer for Zuckerberg and Comey, dealing with trade secrets and state in their offices and homes. Still, no one to end the personal lives commented on hacker forums because they had the misfortune of being caught in an attempt to someone displaying their technological prowess. If you can not beat them, paste plastic over them.