In June, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg celebrated Instagram's milestone of 500 million monthly users by posting a picture online. The post, however, quickly spread because the photo revealed that the CEO's laptop had a tape on the webcam and microphone.
The simple DIY security is no doubt Zuckerberg's way of preventing hackers from spying on him as his one of the highest-profile security target worldwide. And this precaution is echoed by FBI Director James Comey.
There are a lot of smart people out there and some will use it with malicious intent. Today's hackers are capable of accessing someone's laptop enabling them to record sensitive information about an individual.
The gathered data can then be used against the victim for blackmail, breaking into their security system, or even identity theft. Leaks in the past have revealed that spying on someone this way has been done by a lot of people including the US government employing the method on certain targets.
Comey said that this precaution is already being practiced in government offices and that citizens should be doing the same.
"There's some sensible things you should be doing, and that's one of them," Comey said regarding webcam covers. "You go into any government office and we all have the little camera things that sit on top of the screen. They all have a little lid that closes down on them. You do that so that people who don't have authority don't look at you. I think that's a good thing."
Special gadgets are also being developed by security companies for added protection against hackers. Recently, Hide My Ass! - a web security company - announced that they are producing products that will sit over the top of people's webcam protecting them should a hacker break into your computer.
The simple accessory also holds a lens that will allow people to take an image and have that show to unwanted, prying eyes. While some may consider this as baseless paranoia, others have applied the added measure to preserve their privacy.
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