(ETH) – If you have an iPhone and have wondered what that little green dot is at the top of your phone, you may be in for a surprise. According to a new report, the latest iPhone IOS 14 update has added a new “warning dot” that alerts you whenever your microphone or camera is activated.
What this means is if any app is surreptitiously recording you, it will pop up at the top of your phone to let you know that your camera has just been activated and is now recording you. If you see an orange dot if means the microphone was just activated. You can see which apps are using your camera and microphone by going into your Control Center and see details about which app is using these.
If you suspect something is up, you should check the app’s permissions in Settings. You can also deny specific apps accessing your microphone or camera as well. You could just delete the app altogether if you’re really paranoid. “Privacy is a fundamental human right and at the core of everything we do,” Apple explained.
“That’s why with iOS 14, we’re giving you more control over the data you share and more transparency into how it’s used. “An indicator appears at the top of your screen whenever an app is using your microphone or camera. And in Control Center, you can see if an app has used them recently.”
This new feature isn’t the only new addition, You can now also share a rough location with an app – rather than your exact details, meaning an app can now show you nearby stores, for instance, without knowing exactly where you live. Many Facebook users have feared for many years now that the platform is using their phone’s microphone to listen in on real-world conversations – to help target ads. But is it true? Facebook has been very clear about the matter and says it isn’t using microphone recordings to target ads better.
