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10.4: Disable integrated iSight cameras
Authored by: bts on Mar 26, '07 09:14:41AM

This hint is correct about its directly observable consequences, but not their implications.

This makes it hard for programs to use the iSight. They might have to ship their own drivers. They might have to access it directly, without QuickTime's friendly interface. But they can certainly still get to it.



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10.4: Disable integrated iSight cameras
Authored by: ebow on Mar 26, '07 10:12:53AM
This hint appears to be for situations where no program should be able to access the iSight. There are environments in which cameras are not allowed, and by deleting this file a person might be able to demonstrate that the camera is effectively disabled and therefore permissible for use. Of course, the security fiends I've encountered would probably still be reluctant to give it approval, but the point of the hint still stands: making the camera unusable.

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10.4: Disable integrated iSight cameras
Authored by: GaelicWizard on Mar 27, '07 04:23:35AM

I believe that you misunderstood the comment to which you are replying.

Any program *can* still access the iSight camera, just not through QuickTime.

JP

---
Pell



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10.4: Disable integrated iSight cameras
Authored by: chafnerjr on Mar 26, '07 11:40:09AM

Good points all around. I shouldn't have focused on the NSA security document but thats what made me realize not to many people were doing this. Mostly I was concerned about the educational market. While developers or programmers could certainly work around my proposed solution easily, my students cannot. Working for an educational facility it was demanded of me that I disable the cameras in a way so that the students could not use them but also be remotely reversable. As you can imagine this is easy to disabled and re-enable over a network using ARD or other such administrative methods. I know this is not highly secure but it works in a pinch for everyone and perfectly for education.

P.S. Most major OS X updates replace this file so remember to check it after any OS updates.

Chris Hafner
chafnerjr@yahoo.com



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