Camfecting

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Camfecting, in computer security, is the process of hacking into a person's webcam, activate it without its permission and use it to spy on the victim perpetually while they use their device if it is online. Camfecting is often performed by infecting the victim's device with a virus that can provide the hacker access to their webcam. Webcams can also be more vulnerable to camfecting if their software is outdated, or if they are not protected by a firewall with an antivirus. The term "camfecting" is a porte-manteau of two words, "camera" and "infecting".

Camfecting has become an international problem, which led to various people around the world covering their webcams to avoid surveillance by hackers. They have also beens cases of sextorting by spying on others' webcams and taking pictures of them whenever they are nude.

Notable cases

In 2013, an incident involving camfecting on iSight cameras integrated on MacBooks had been reported internationally. The incident became known as iSeeYou. 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.

In November 2013, American teenager Jared James Abrahams pleaded guilty to hacking over 100-150 women and installing the highly invasive malware Blackshades on their computers in order to obtain nude images and videos of them. One of his victims was Miss Teen USA 2013 Cassidy Wolf.