The camera feature is one of the essential functions offered by smart devices. It is helpful while attending a business meeting over video calls and chatting with friends. When it comes to camera quality, Mac is the best with its iSight Camera. But there are a lot of privacy and security concerns going on around the world. The issue with our current technology is that anyone can bypass our security and monitor us through our web cameras. Also, if you are concerned with your privacy, you can turn off the camera on your Mac. But technically, it is impossible or rather isn’t straightforward. Still, you can deny the apps and browsers that require camera access requests. However, there are ways to disable the camera on Mac. You can learn how to turn off the camera on Mac by referring to the below section.
How to Turn Off Camera on Mac
There are four ways you can turn off the camera or tweak MacBook camera settings. They are:
- From System Preference
- On Safari Web Browser
- Using Parental Controls
- Using Screen Time
1. Disable Camera on MacBook from System Preference
In the System Preference section, There is an option you can use to turn off the camera for certain apps. Now, you can proceed with the below steps to do the same.
1. Turn on your Mac.
2. Select the Apple icon from the upper left corner.
3. Select System Preferences.
4. In the System Preference, select Security & Privacy.
5. Then, select the Privacy tab.
4. Now, click on the Camera option.
6. The list of available apps that has access to your Mac’s camera will be displayed in the list.
7. Untick the checkbox of all the apps that have access to your Mac’s camera.
8. Now, you have turned off the camera on your Mac.
Related: How to Take Screenshots on Mac
2. Turn Off Camera on MacBook from Safari Web Browser
Do you know that you can turn off the camera for the websites you visit that require camera access? You can go ahead with the guidelines given below to turn off the camera on the Safari browser.
1. Open the Safari web browser on your Mac.
2. Click on Safari from the upper menu bar near the Apple icon.
3. Select Select Preferences.
4. Then, select the Websites tab from the upper menu bar.
5. Select the Camera option from the General section.
6. Now, you can see the opened websites on your Safari browser in the Currently Open Websites section.
7. Click on the Up arrow or Down arrow button near the currently opened website and set the option to Deny.
8. Also, set the option to When Visiting other websites as Deny.
9. Now, your Safari browser will not have access to your Mac’s camera.
3. Disable Camera on MacBook using Parental Controls
Parental Control is a built-in feature on your Mac where you can disable the camera access for certain apps on your Mac.
1. Select the Apple icon from the upper left corner of the home screen.
2. Select System Preference.
3. In the System Preference, select Parental Controls.
4. Now, click on your user account from the left pane.
5. If you haven’t enabled Parental Controls, click on Enable Parental Controls.
6. Now, select the Apps tab.
7. Untick the checkbox near the Allow Use of Camera.
8. Now, no apps in your Mac will have access to the built-in camera.
4. Turn Off the Camera on MacBook using Screen Time
Screen Time is also a built-in application for your Mac where you can use that feature to turn off the camera access for certain apps on Mac.
1. Click on the Apple icon from the upper left corner of the home screen.
2. Select System Preferences.
3. In the System Preference, select Screen Time.
4. Select the Content & Privacy from the home screen.
5. Select the Apps tab.
6. In the Allow section, untick the checkbox of the Camera.
7. Now, all the apps on your Mac will have no access to the built-in camera.
Related: How to Take a Picture on a Mac
Technically there are no possible ways to turn off your Macs, but you can deny access to your Camera for the apps that request access. If you are conscious of your privacy, you can turn off the camera on your Mac by following the above methods.
Frequently Asked Questions
Technically, you cannot completely turn off the camera on Mac. But, you can disable camera access to particular apps or browsers on Mac. To know more, refer to the blog.
On Mac, click the Apple icon >> click System Preferences >> Tap Security & Privacy >> Select Privacy >> Tap Camera >> Untick the box near the app to disable camera access.