During a program yesterday recognizing the 10th anniversary of the U.S. Department of Justice’s National Security Division, James Comey, director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), acknowledged that he continues to cover the webcam on his computer with a piece of tape and says that others should do the same.
Asked about cyber threats during an on-stage conversation in Washington, D.C., with John P. Carlin, Assistant Attorney General for National Security, Comey (pictured above) said everyone should take sensible precautions in the face of an ever-larger “attack surface.” When Carlin followed up with a question about whether Comey still has tape over his webcam, the FBI director said, “Heck, yeah.”
Despite being “much mocked for that, it’s not crazy that the FBI director cares about personal security as well,” Comey said. All of the desktop cameras in the agency’s offices also have lids that can be lowered to prevent unauthorized video surveillance, he added.
‘A Kind of Band-Aid’
Comey is hardly the only high-profile individual known to cover his webcam for security reasons. In June, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg posted a photo of himself at his desk in an announcement that Facebook-owned Instagram had reached 500 million users per month. In that photo, it was clear to see that the laptop webcam on the desk to his right was covered up.
Operations professional Chris Olson quickly noted on Twitter that the Zuckerberg photo showed three notable features about the CEO’s computer habits: “camera covered with tape,” “mic jack covered with tape” and “email client is Thunderbird.”
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) has long advocated that computer users protect themselves against unwanted surveillance by taping over their webcams when not in use. After a federal judge rejected a government request to hack a criminal suspect’s computer and camera in 2013, the EFF advised people to use Post-it notes or some other type of covering with low-tack, pressure-sensitive adhesive to cover their computer cameras.
“These measures act as a kind of Band-Aid against surveillance (and some people use a Band-Aid for this purpose),” EFF deputy executive director and general counsel Kurt Opsahl noted in an April 2013 blog post. “It’s a simple step that will mitigate the harm, but not a complete privacy solution.”
‘Be Sensible in Security Hygiene’
“People just need to continue to be sensible in their security hygiene,” Comey told Carlin yesterday. “As a good consumer, read about the security of devices and what steps people are taking to protect you.”
During the conversation, Comey offered numerous light-hearted asides about various issues he’s had to contend with during his tenure at the FBI.
Carlin jokingly suggesting he wanted to ask about the FBI’s recent no-prosecution recommendation in connection with the email server investigation of former Secretary of State (and Democratic presidential candidate) Hillary Clinton. “Don’t you dare,” Comey said. At one point, Comey also stated that he stays away from Twitter on the advice of his children because “apparently they say horrible things about me on Twitter.”
Comey also addressed a number of serious topics, including the need for a national conversation about privacy and security at a time when strong encryption means “we’re moving to a place where large swaths of American life will be absolutely private.” Another need is better cooperation between the public and private sector, he said.
Most businesses that experience cyberattacks, “do not tell us about it,” Comey said. He urged more organizations to come forward with information about such attacks. “We will not revictimize them,” he said.
When asked about the FBI’s court efforts to compel Apple to unlock an iPhone seized after a mass shooting in San Bernardino (the agency was eventually able to access the device with the help of an unidentified third party), Comey said, “I hope that doesn’t chill cooperation.” The agency had a compelling purpose and strong legal arguments for its case, “but none of that was sneaky . . . we’re transparent and upfront about it,” he said.
