How to See Which Apps Are Using Your Webcam on Windows 10
- Chris Hoffman
@chrisbhoffman
Your webcams light is on, but which applications are watching you? Windows 10 now has an easy, built-in way to find out. You can also see which apps have previously used your webcamand the precise time they last accessed it.
This feature is new in Windows 10s May 2019 Update. On older versions of Windows, you had to dig through complicated details about devices and running processes to discover which applications were recording you. It works for both USB webcams and the cameras built into laptops and tablets.
To find this information, head to Settings > Privacy > Camera.
Scroll down to the list of applications hereyoull see two lists: one for Microsoft Store apps and one for traditional desktop applications.
Look through each list of applications. If an application is currently accessing your webcam, youll see the red text Currently in use under the applications name.
To discover which applications have been accessing your webcam, look for any gray text under an application saying Last accessed at specific date and time. This is the time the application last accessed your webcam.
If an application doesnt have any text like this, its never accessed your webcamor at least it hasnt done so since you installed the May 2019 Update.
If you dont see any information like this here, you likely havent installed the May 2019 Update on your PC yet.
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RELATED: Everything New in Windows 10's May 2019 Update, Available Now
Beware: As Microsoft explains, not every desktop application will appear in the list here. Unlike Store applications, traditional desktop applications could choose to access your webcam in a lower-level way and may not appear in this list even if theyre accessing your webcam right now. For example, remote access tools [RATs] and similar malware may access your webcam in such a way. However, even if such an application is accessing your webcam in this way, the webcams hardware light should still come on normally.
The Settings > Privacy > Camera screen also offers options to disable access to your webcam. However, a hardware solution like unplugging your webcam or covering it up may be a safer solution if you want to disable webcam use completely.
This works similarly to Windows 10s new microphone indicator and its associated privacy settings. The Settings > Privacy > Microphone screen will display which applications are currently accessing and have previously accessed your webcam, too. However, theres no notification area icon for webcam access like there is for microphone accessthe physical light on your webcam serves as a notification an application is accessing your webcam.
RELATED: How to See Which Apps Are Using Your Microphone on Windows 10
Chris Hoffman is Editor-in-Chief of How-To Geek. He's written about technology for over a decade and was a PCWorld columnist for two years. Chris has written for The New York Times, been interviewed as a technology expert on TV stations like Miami's NBC 6, and had his work covered by news outlets like the BBC. Since 2011, Chris has written over 2,000 articles that have been read nearly one billion times---and that's just here at How-To Geek. Read Full Bio »