The latest iPhone update includes the “warning point” feature, which will alert users every time an app activates your device’s microphone or camera. In other words, if any app tries to spy on you, you’ll know right away.
On devices running iOS 14 operating system, a green dot appears in the upper-right corner of the screen when cameras are activated. In case an orange light appears, it will be the microphone that activates.
If the light is turned on, users will be able to turn on the Device Control Center to view details about the app that is using these components, if they find something suspicious, users are advised to check the permissions of the app in question, restrict its use, or even uninstall it from the device.
In this regard Apple says: “Privacy is a fundamental human right and is the cornerstone of all the work we’ve done recently. The latest version of iOS 14 will give users full control of data shared from their devices.”
The company included other security improvements in this new release. For example, if necessary, users can enable a nearby location, thus avoiding providing their exact location. Sometimes tech device users have experienced unintentional activation of voice assistants, so they have been concerned about their privacy and the possibility of large companies spying on users.
Although Facebook has repeatedly mentioned that its app is not able to activate the microphone, users remain constantly afraid of being spied on by the world’s largest social media platform.
There is no clear evidence to prove that Facebook is spying on its users’ conversations, although it is likely that multiple applications with high permissions on the operating system can activate camera and microphone, so measures such as that implemented by Apple are ideal to give the user greater certainty about access to their information.
He is a well-known expert in mobile security and malware analysis. He studied Computer Science at NYU and started working as a cyber security analyst in 2003. He is actively working as an anti-malware expert. He also worked for security companies like Kaspersky Lab. His everyday job includes researching about new malware and cyber security incidents. Also he has deep level of knowledge in mobile security and mobile vulnerabilities.