If the Windows camera cannot be used or is worried about being stolen, you should check the system permissions and application permissions. First, make sure that "Allow applications to access cameras" is enabled in the system settings and enable the permissions of specific applications one by one; second, check the internal settings of the application, such as Chrome browser, you need to allow the camera in the website settings; if the camera is occupied, you can restart the computer and close suspicious processes; finally pay attention to physical occlusion and update the driver to solve potential problems.

If there is a problem with your Windows camera privacy settings, such as some applications cannot call the camera, or you are worried that it will be used secretly, in most cases, the permission configuration is wrong. The focus is on checking the two levels of system permissions and application permissions.

Check whether the camera access permission is enabled in the system settings

Both Windows 10 and 11 restrict apps from accessing the camera by default, unless you allow it manually. To open the settings to view:

• Open Settings > Privacy and Security > Camera
• Make sure the "Allow apps to access your camera" master switch is on
• Scroll down to find the specific app you are using (such as Teams, Zoom, or the camera app itself) and make sure the switch behind it is also on

Sometimes even if the main switch is turned on, some applications still do not have permission, so you need to confirm one by one. If this is not set correctly, it will be useless even if you select the camera in the application settings.

Check whether the permission settings inside the application are correct

Some software will manage permissions themselves, such as browsers or video conferencing tools. Take Chrome as an example:

• Open a web page that requires a camera (such as Google Meet)
• Click the lock icon on the right side of the address bar > "Website Settings"
• Confirm the camera permission is "Allowed"

If you have rejected permission requests for a certain website before, it may have been disabled by default, and you need to change it manually at this time. Similarly, some desktop apps also have their own settings options, and it is recommended to check if the camera is enabled in their Preferences.

What should I do if the camera is occupied by other programs?

Sometimes you will get a prompt saying "Another program is using the camera", but you can't find which one it is. You can try the following methods:

• Restart the computer: This is one of the easiest and most effective ways
• Close all apps that may use the camera (including those running in the background)
• Check whether there are hidden processes occupies the camera in Task Manager (although Task Manager will not directly display the camera occupancy, you can see if there are suspicious processes)

If you encounter this problem frequently, it may be that some system services or third-party software secretly enables the camera in the background. You can consider regularly checking start items and service items to close unnecessary automatic running programs.

Additional reminder: Don't forget about physical occlusion and driver updates

Although not every time, there are two easy points to ignore:

• If you have a physical camera cover, please open it
• Update the camera driver: You can check whether there is a device with an exclamation mark through the Device Manager, and right-click to select "Update Driver"

Especially after using an external laptop camera or changing the system version, the driver incompatible may also lead to the inability to recognize the camera.

Basically, these common causes and solutions. Most of the time, it is a problem of permission setting, and it can be solved by just step by step.

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