Khaberni - Smart devices have become a common sight in homes around the world, starting from smartphones to smart home devices that can recognize voices and respond to various voice commands.
Although these devices are central to many users around the world and have greatly facilitated their lives, they actually represent an unprecedented security threat due to their array of sensors and microphones that can be used at any moment to spy on the user.
This does not necessarily mean that companies are spying on users, as these devices can easily be hacked, gaining access to the sensors they contain, including microphones and camera devices if they include them.
Fortunately, there are a number of signs that prove that there is a hacker using your smart device to eavesdrop on you and hear things they shouldn't, and these signs may vary slightly among different smart devices, but generally, they are similar.
Signs of eavesdropping on a smartphone
Smartphones have many components that can be used to eavesdrop on users, and microphones are perhaps one of the simplest things that can be used for this purpose.
Hackers can access microphones by using malicious apps and installing them on the user’s phone, then these apps request permissions to access the microphone, camera, and other sensors.
After that, the hacker can access all the details and data they desire, and the matter does not stop here at the microphone and sensors only, but the hacker can also access files stored on the phone.
Since such apps usually disguise themselves as safe applications, phone manufacturers had to find a new mechanism to inform the user that the microphone is being used.
In "Android" phones, there is a continuous alert that the microphone is being used, and you might see a small dot appear at the top of the screen, while in "iPhone" phones, you'll see an orange illuminated dot appear in the screen notch.
On laptops
The situation is a bit different on "Microsoft Windows" computers, and it is more challenging than phones and even "MacBook" laptops, where in the latter one can look for the same orange dot that tells you the microphone is being used, but "Windows" devices do not have this.
The best option to detect eavesdropping and spying via "Windows" devices is to go to the computer's settings, then choose Privacy and App Permissions, where you will find all the permissions granted to all the apps on your device.
You can check the permissions list and spot the app that uses the microphone unnecessarily, and this step relies somewhat on general information and logic, for example, what does a calculator app need access to the camera and microphone for?
In smart home devices
Some smart home devices have indicators that tell you whether the microphone is active or not, for example, the smart "Amazon Alexa" device has a blue light that tells you the device is listening to you.
In "Google" smart speakers, the light becomes white and pulsating, and in "Apple" devices, the light becomes filled with various colors.
Naturally, you can confirm the access permissions to the device and the microphone through the settings menu of each smart speaker individually, as all the details appear there.
