View source for ISeeYou

{{Short description|Security bug}}
{{lowercasetitle}}
'''iSeeYou''' is a [[Security bug|security bug]] affecting iSight cameras in some Apple laptops.<ref name="jhu-2013-12-11">{{cite journal|url=https://jscholarship.library.jhu.edu/handle/1774.2/36569 |title=iSeeYou: Disabling the MacBook Webcam Indicator LED |website=Jscholarship.library.jhu.edu |date=2013-12-11 |access-date=2017-05-05|last1=Checkoway |first1=Stephen |last2=Brocker |first2=Matthew }}</ref>

== Discovery ==
The researchers' decision to study webcam indicator lights resulted from the widely reported WebcamGate case, in which a remote access tool installed on  school-issued laptops took photographs of unconsenting students.<ref>{{cite web|last=Mlot |first=Stephanie |url=https://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2428635,00.asp |title=Is Your MacBook Webcam Watching You? &#124; News & Opinion |website=PCMag.com |date=2013-12-20 |access-date=2017-05-05}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.businessinsider.com/macbook-webcam-spy-hack-2013-12?IR=T |title=Yes, Someone Can Spy On You Using Your Own MacBook Webcam |work=Business Insider |date=December 18, 2013 |first=Megan Rose |last=Dickey |access-date=2017-05-05}}</ref> The study demonstrated that the webcam indicator light could be turned off while the camera itself was turned on by bypassing the standby state of the signal. This was performed by changing the RESET register in the device's firmware to a value of 0x00c8.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Brocker |first=Mattew |last2=Checkoway |first2=Stephen |date=August 20, 2014 |title=iıSeeYou: Disabling the MacBook Webcam Indicator LED |url=https://jscholarship.library.jhu.edu/bitstream/handle/1774.2/36569/camera.pdf?sequence=1 |journal=Usenix |pages=17}}</ref>

== Impact ==
The security flaw was reported internationally.<ref name="wapo-2013-12-18">{{cite news|last=Soltani |first=Ashkan |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2013/12/18/research-shows-how-macbook-webcams-can-spy-on-their-users-without-warning/ |title=Research shows how MacBook Webcams can spy on their users without warning |newspaper={{wipe|The Washington Post}} |date=2013-12-18 |access-date=2017-05-05}}</ref><ref name="reg-2013-12-19">{{cite web|url=https://www.theregister.co.uk/2013/12/19/apple_isight_webcam_led_hack/|title=Macbook webcams CAN spy on you - and you simply CAN'T TELL|website=Theregister.co.uk|access-date=2017-05-05}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.computerbild.de/artikel/cb-News-Notebooks-Apple-Sicherheitsluecke-iSight-Kamera-9091874.html |title=Apple: Sicherheitslücke erlaubt Zugriff auf iSight-Kamera - COMPUTER BILD |website=Computerbild.de |date=2013-12-19 |access-date=2017-05-05}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/12/19/researchers-hack-webcam-while-disabling-warning-lights/ |title=Researchers Hack Webcam While Disabling Warning Lights |website=New York Times |first=Nick |last=Hilton |date=2013-12-19 |access-date=2017-05-05}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Schaffhauser |first=Dian |url=https://thejournal.com/articles/2014/01/08/macbook-webcams-vulnerable-to-peek-hacking.aspx |title=MacBook Webcams Vulnerable to 'Peek' Hacking |publisher=The Journal |date=2014-01-08 |access-date=2017-05-05}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author=Charles Arthur |url=https://www.theguardian.com/technology/blog/2013/dec/19/mobile-internet-scale |title=Boot up: mobile scale, Titan's work, webcam spying, Bitcoin woes and more &#124; Technology |newspaper={{wipe|The Guardian}} |access-date=2017-05-05}}</ref>

This vulnerability was used in the extortion of Miss Teen USA, Cassidy Wolf, when she received emails containing nude photos of herself, taken without her knowledge, from an unknown man. Wolf claimed she never knew she was being recorded and that her webcam light never turned on.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Cassidy Wolf, Miss Teen USA, claims she was extorted by an online hacker, report says |url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/cassidy-wolf-miss-teen-usa-claims-she-was-extorted-by-an-online-hacker-report-says/ |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=www.cbsnews.com |language=en-US}}</ref> The FBI arrested Jared Abrahams in relation to this crime as well as the [[Social:Sextortion|sextortion]] of other female victims. Abrahams admitted he had infected victims' computers with malware and was able to record victims undress without the webcam light alerting them.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Temecula Student Arrested in Sextortion Case Involving Multiple Victims |url=https://www.fbi.gov/losangeles/press-releases/2013/temecula-student-arrested-in-sextortion-case-involving-multiple-victims |access-date=2022-08-28 |website=FBI |language=en-us}}</ref>

Journalists observed that Apple had sold their laptops as having a "hardware interlock" that was supposed to prevent such an attack,<ref name="reg-2013-12-19" /><ref>{{cite web|last=Cole |first=Shane |url=http://appleinsider.com/articles/13/12/18/researchers-find-way-to-activate-isight-cameras-without-alerting-users |title=Researchers find way to activate iSight cameras without alerting users |website=AppleInsider |date=2013-12-18 |access-date=2017-05-05}}</ref><ref name="time-2013-12-20">{{cite magazine|last=Peckham |first=Matt |url=http://techland.time.com/2013/12/20/apple-please-give-us-a-fix-a-guarantee-that-our-isight-webcams-are-safe/ |title=Miss Teen USA's Webcam Hacked &#124; TIME.com |magazine=Time |date=2013-12-20 |access-date=2017-05-05}}</ref> and called on Apple to implement hardware switches or other strong privacy protections.<ref name="time-2013-12-20" />

== Mitigation ==
The Apple laptops affected are capable of running a variety of [[Operating system|operating system]]s, including [[Software:MacOS|macOS]], [[Software:Microsoft Windows|Microsoft Windows]], and [[Software:Linux|Linux]]. Mitigations against iSeeYou may vary by operating system. The researchers released a macOS kernel extension, iSightDefender, to reduce the attack surface under macOS.<ref name="jhu-2013-12-11" />

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

{{Hacking in the 2010s}}

[[Category:Software bugs]]



{{Sourceattribution|ISeeYou}}