ACER 6920 - Webcam Hijacked?

Hello,

I got some great information from the people on here previously and I'm back for more advice.

I have the ACER 6920 Gemstone Blue, it has a built in webcam called Acer Crystal Eye.

As I get older the paranoia gets worse, and lately I've been wondering who is watching me! I have been using Skype, Msn, Yahoo messenger and Facebook to stay in contact with family back home. I am not at all convinced about the secuity of these programs and wonder if I have been hijacked.

How can I check to see if my webcam has been hijacked?

Is there some where that I can look to see if it is in use?

Thanks for your help.

 

place a piece of paper over the webcam? I don't think there's a way. Maye you could also deactivte it from the device manager if you don't use it

 

I thought about that too they can also hear since it has built in mics.
Maybe with a decent hacker security prog you could tell but i dont know.

 

Hey @darkfng long time no see(I'm atthegates, in case you can't recognize me )

It's really easy to turn the camera off when you are not using it. Just disable the driver in the Device Manager - this disables the device. I don't think you have a reason to worry about though I think you're too paranoid in that case. Unless you have some facts to backup this paranoia of course

 

It sounds like someone may need to see their doctor?

 

Indeed a visit to the doctor is rarely a bad idea!

Hi, ATG! Yes you guys must get sick of people like me hitting you up for handy advice then buggering off for months. Its nice to know there is a place to come to when I need some decent advice.

I have disabled the device and instantly feel more secure, more fool me.

Whilst I don't really have any concrete evidence that something untoward is going on I have noticed a few things lately that have made me wonder. I have had occasional slow downs and my desktop icons changed in size.

Whilst its entirely possible that the slow downs were caused my the usual goings on of a laptop and the icon change caused by messing around with the ever popular P223w, it never hurts to check.

I will have to free up some time for some laptop loving and maintenance. Which may lead to more questions!

If not thanks again for your help and an early merry christmas to you.

 

Darkfng, consider doing a Trend Micro House Call to make sure there's nothing unwanted on your system, just to be on the safe side.

 

darkfng cheers man and Merry Christmas to you too. As always - glad to help