Toggle Microphone functionality

Question

Toggle Microphone functionality

Hey All,

I'd like to encourage a forum discussion about how to disable the microphone on your mac because it don't think it is possible atm in MAC OS X. I've done some breif searching online and found a few postings on this topic but most seem to be people who just need to find the:

System preferences menu --> Sound --> Input --> (SELECT MICROPHONE IN THE DIRECTORY) --> (TOGGLE THE INPUT VOLUME)

So that is the method to adapt the input 'volume' in MAC OS X (in my version of OS X anyways). But I am curious to learn how I can disable the hardware functionality completely, after all this is my hardware and I'd like to have the convienient ability to adapt it - as I see fit. So I guess my inquiry is somewhat philosophical.

Does Apple have any intention what so ever in the future to empower Macintosh users to have more administrative ability to control their systems in the context of the ability to disable the functionality of the microphone(s)?

I want to disable and enable my microphone; from a hardware monitoring perspective.

My reasons for doing this are simple: control of my system. I think anyone with an iMac in their living room's can empathize with concerns regarding our privacy.

Thanks everyone,

K-

Here are some other forum posts on the same topic:

https://discussions.apple.com/thread/4550979?start=0&tstart=0

https://discussions.apple.com/community/mac_os/search.jspa?peopleEnabled=true&us erID=&containerType=&container=&spotlight=false&q=disable%20microphone

Posted on May 24, 2013 6:55 PM

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Answer 1

Meg The Dog

Level 6

13,561 points

May 24, 2013 7:44 PM in response to Kyle Macintosh

Just go to Apple Menu > System Preferences > Sound > and click on the input tab. Now select another input source other than your microphone. This will disable your microphone:

Then close system preferences.

Now the system will look to the line-in port for source sound, not the microphone.

Is this what you wanted?

MtD

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Answer 2

May 27, 2013 5:49 AM in response to Meg The Dog

Hi,

Meg The Dog: This process seems to me to be insecure from a systems security standpoint.

My interest is not to toggle the hardware, but to gain access to the hardware itself and disable its functionality. In windows there is a device manager where users can disable the hardware. If the system is compromised and the hardware is enabled, the user can log that information and it can help in future to make the network more secure.

So my question is not a network security issue, it is a computer software issue. Does the OS X have the administrator ability to disable the functionality of the hardware on the mainboard? In a more of a diagnostics and security perspective.

K-

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