Ventura Deactivate the MacBook Pro 2023 webcam permanently

Hello Apple Community!

I have a severe addiction that includes the use of my webcam.

I've researched a lot but for now didn't find any way to permanently deactivate the webcam on a MacBook Pro 2023 M2.

My only idea for now is to find a really good permanent marker and paint over it, but I'm worrying that I'll be able to get that off again if I really want to.

Are there any third party apps, for example used for parental control, that could help?

Any ideas would be very appreciated.

All the best!

Greetings!

We appreciate your post in the Apple Support Community. To permanently deactivate the webcam on your MacBook Pro 2023 without physically altering it, follow these steps:

1. System Preferences: Go to Apple menu > System Preferences.
2. Security & Privacy: Click on the Security & Privacy option.
3. Privacy tab: Navigate to the Privacy tab and then to Camera. Uncheck all apps to prevent them from accessing the camera.

For an extra layer of security:

• Terminal:Open the Terminal app (found in Applications > Utilities).
• Enter the following command: sudo chmod a-r /System/Library/Frameworks/CoreMediaIO.framework/Versions/A/Resources/VDC.plugin/Contents/MacOS/VDC
• Press Enter. You'll be asked for your password; type it in (no characters will appear for security reasons) and press Enter again.

This command changes the permissions of the camera driver, effectively disabling the camera. If you ever want to re-enable it, you'd need to reverse the command, which makes it difficult to impulsively turn the camera back on.

Note: Always ensure you're comfortable using Terminal commands and understand their implications. The above command is reversible, but if you're unsure, seek assistance or consider third-party parental control apps that offer similar functionality.

For English speakers, we have a dedicated community right here: discussions.apple.com. Since your message is in English, we warmly invite you to join us in that community.

Best regards!

Thanks a lot for the fast reply, that really helps a lot!

And thanks for guiding me to the english forum, I will ask there if I have any new questions from now on.

But for now, could you tell me, is there also a way to permanently disable the use of my iPhone as webcam using a command line or similar?

All the best!

If you're looking to permanently disable the camera on your iPhone via command line, you're facing a challenge. Apple's iOS is a closed system, meaning you don't have the same command line access as on some other operating systems. Apple does this to maintain system security and stability.

However, if you're thinking in terms of Mac and using the iPhone as a webcam for the Mac (through apps like Camo, EpocCam, or similar), you can disable those specific apps from accessing the iPhone camera by going to their specific permissions on the Mac.

If you're looking for a physical solution, some people use camera covers, but do be careful about any adhesive or cover that might damage the lens or phone surface.

All the best to you too! Take care!