Can Your Phone Camera Get Hacked

Unfortunately in the modern day, it is possible for your phone camera to be hacked (although still extremely unlikely). This is especially true if you’re connect to public wi-fi, which is much less stable and secure than using the wifi network in your own home.

But how can you know if your phone camera is hacked? Well, here are a few ways that you can tell if your phone is hacked, and what you can do to stop this happening.

How to know if your phone camera is hacked?

The best way to tell whether your phone camera has been hacked is by using the camera itself. Then, zoom your camera in and out. If your camera is experiencing a lot of lag, this can be one of the telltale signs that it has been hacked.

Of course, this isn’t the only way that you can tell whether your phone has been hacked or not. There are some more things that you can do, or signs you might see, which can tell you whether your phone has been hacked.

The main way that your smartphone would be hacked in the modern day is with a trojan horse virus (or by something like mSpy software or a powerful tool called eyeZy). Let’s look at some problems that this kind of virus might cause for your phone.

How else can you know if your phone is hacked

Although your phone camera can be hacked, it’s one of the least likely parts of your phone that could be hacked into. Your data is much more likely to be hacked in other areas, like your Google Drive, or into your Apple Cloud Storage.

But if your phone has been directly hacked into, how can you tell that this has happened? Well, here are a few signs to look out for to tell whether your phone has been hacked.

Battery life gets dramatically worse

One of the main signals that might indicate that your phone has been hacked in a dramatic difference in its battery life. If suddenly your phone can’t even make it through a whole day without the need to be recharged, then you might have a problem.

The thing is that if your phone is actually hacked, it is likely the hacker will be using a lot of your mobile data. This is what increases the overall battery life usage of your phone. Note that there will be a significant decrease in your phone’s battery life.

Your phone’s battery getting gradually worse over time is expected with any phone. But if it plummets very quickly, then hacking could be a factor.

Phone starts acting weird

As well as a limited battery life, another indicator that you might have been hacked is that your phone starts doing strange things. The best example of this is that your phone just suddenly decides to turn off whilst you’re using it, which is another key indicator that it may have been compromised.

Your phone may also start to become slow and unresponsive. Getting a good security software in place is key to fixing this kind of issue, and more importantly, stopping it happening again in the future.

Random Text Activity

A telltale sign that your phone has been hacked is when your text and call history is showing things that you have never actually done yourself. Finding random texts sent out, or calls made? There’s a chance that you’ve been hacked.

Sometimes, the hacker is trying to gain access to your personal information. But in some cases, they may just be trying to use your phone to go on their own website or something similar to try and earn money from your website traffic.

Although data usage is the main reason hackers want to get into your phone, it’s not the only reason. Sending premium text messages can make a lot of money for the hacker, so make sure you haven’t sent a ton of texts that you aren’t aware of.

Data

Something that you’re going to want to check is how much data your phone is using. Another sign of hacking is that your phone starts using more data than it had previously.

Make sure that you’re not using crazy amounts of data, as often a hacker will try and get your phone to be accessing the internet 24/7. If someone has access to your phone, then you’re likely to see the amount of data you use go up quite dramatically.

Pop Ups

Just like with your laptop, pop ups can be another indicator that you’ve got some privacy problems on your phone. You can fix this by downloading a good anti virus software.

These kinds of pop ups have always been an easy way to tell if your device is hacked. Fortunately, it is an easy way for you to know that your phone is hacked, and then, you can do something about it.

How likely is it that my phone camera has been hacked?

If you’re wondering whether your phone has been hacked already, then it will depend on the operating system your phone uses. Let’s look at both Apple and Android, and what you can do to prevent being hacked in the future.

iPhone

The truth is that it is very, very unlikely that your phone camera has been hacked. This is especially true if you’re an iPhone user that’s kept their phone up to date, as this can help to stop people accessing your phone.

There aren’t any exploits of the Apple OS, unless you’ve left it in the hands of someone who’s experienced enough to do this physically. For the most part though, they are generally more secure than Android phones.

Make sure that when you’re downloading Apple apps from the store, that you check the apps and its reviews – this is probably the most likely source of a hack. You can also ensure that these apps don’t have access to your camera within the settings of the app.

Android

Whilst Android isn’t as secure as Apple, it’s still very, very unlikely that you’d be hacked. This is for a few reasons, including the app approval process for Android, which isn’t as strict as Apple’s.

You can help to prevent your Android phone in a few ways, including;

Don’t root your Android phone, and if you use Apple, then don’t get you iPhone Jailbroken. If you don’t do this, then you’re far less likely to get your phone hacked.
Always make sure that you trust an app when you install it from the App Store. If you don’t make sure to go into your settings and check what the app has access to.
For Android, it could be worth getting a good antivirus software. This can help to keep you from getting hacked, and will ensure that your data isn’t compromised.

Also, be aware of these methods of screenshotting on Snapchat without knowing.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it’s very unlikely that your phone has been hacked, as a very small percentage of phone can end up being hacked nowadays. However, if you have done things that you maybe shouldn’t have – like jailbreaking your phone – then this can make it much more likely that your phone has been hacked.

Fortunately, there are a few ways that you can tell if your phone has been hacked or not. You’ll usually notice pretty quickly if someone else is using your phone without your permission, and if they are, then you can do something about it.

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About Jon

Hey, I'm Jon. I'm an engineer by trade, so it makes sense that I'm obsessed with anything technology related! On the weekends, you can find me playing around with my computers or fixing something around the house. Feel free to leave a comment if you want to get in touch.

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