Is there an App/Process for Android to completely disable the camera??

[tommo123]

as someone above said, this would freeze the camera app and assuming that's the only thing your boss checks then i guess it would do the trick. but yes, tasker might be able to do it. titanium backup alone might be able to do it. both cost money but both are well worth it.

but if you install another camera app, this would only freeze one of them

in the end it's your job so you have to decide how much effort you want to put into this.

couldnt you go the route of getting a dumbphone and within work hours, have your smartphone forward calls to the dumbphone? leave the smartphone in your car/locker/wherever?

 

[ControlD]

I think the earlier suggestion of simply putting a piece of tape over the lens is the best and simplest solution. I also have a job where I am not allowed to carry a camera into many areas, as well as customers that require the same thing. In most cases affixing a piece of tape over the lens has more than satisfied the security people. In those rare cases where this was not enough I just leave my phone in the car.

 

[z1ggy]

I think the earlier suggestion of simply putting a piece of tape over the lens is the best and simplest solution. I also have a job where I am not allowed to carry a camera into many areas, as well as customers that require the same thing. In most cases affixing a piece of tape over the lens has more than satisfied the security people. In those rare cases where this was not enough I just leave my phone in the car.

No tape. Physically disabling the camera is the only way- but obviously the whole point of this thread was because I was allowed the software route. However, software disablement is slightly more "permanent" then a piece of black tape over it.

I like the idea of a custom ROM where I could write a code that turns my camera off mon-fri from 9-5 and then on at every other time.

On a scale of 1-10, how hard is this? I have some very basic code writing skills and I am fairly computer savvy, but I haven't ever written in any linux based system.

 

[dagamer34]

The head of cyber security took my phone in his hand, scrolled through all the pages to make sure the camera icon wasn't there, then gave it back to me and said it was okay.

To get my camera back, I'd have to do a total restore of the phone, which of course I could go home and do, but like others have said...It's basically the same as saying, I won't use the camera...but I get a nice sticker on my phone that says my phone is approved.

In the 2.5 yrs I have worked here, I only had my phone physically inspected once...But I'd rather not lose my job or get suspended otherwise.

To the ROM thing...Are there any step by step guides into doing this? I read through some forums of guys trying to make custom ROMS, and they were either not so good at doing it, or it's kind of hard to do.

Uhh... that's not security, that's laziness. You can hide the Camera icon just by using iOS restrictions and turn it back on later. Plus, I'm pretty sure other apps can still use the camera.

Maybe if he checked to see if "No camera" security policy was enforced, I might by that as screening, but what he did is a joke.

 

[z1ggy]

Uhh... that's not security, that's laziness. You can hide the Camera icon just by using iOS restrictions and turn it back on later. Plus, I'm pretty sure other apps can still use the camera.

Maybe if he checked to see if "No camera" security policy was enforced, I might by that as screening, but what he did is a joke.

Yes you're right.. everybody is right who says it wasn't top notch security. Kind of scary when you think about the things we do here. It's kind of dumb anyway, because I don't think people would walk around taking pictures of certain equipment, or documents etc. I know companies that are gov't contractors like us, that allow camera phones. It's just an honor system. Problem is, we contract for the Navy and they are super anal old fashioned conservatives, so it is what it is.

My main goal is to have (as best I can) a legit camera free phone while I am at work, and to easily regain control of the camera outside of work, with out physically destroying the lens.

 

[vshah]

if you can find a custom kernel, or compile your own, that lacks camera drivers, you could "fastboot boot" instead of "fastboot flash" the kernel, which doesn't actually flash it to the boot partition, just boots from it for the one time. the next time you reboot, you would have your camera back.

any time you wanted to disable the camera, you could fastboot boot the camera driver-less kernel again.


honestly though, if deleting the camera icon on iOS was sufficient, it think it would be sufficient to root and freeze the camera.apk app on android as well.

 

[z1ggy]

if you can find a custom kernel, or compile your own, that lacks camera drivers, you could "fastboot boot" instead of "fastboot flash" the kernel, which doesn't actually flash it to the boot partition, just boots from it for the one time. the next time you reboot, you would have your camera back.

any time you wanted to disable the camera, you could fastboot boot the camera driver-less kernel again.


honestly though, if deleting the camera icon on iOS was sufficient, it think it would be sufficient to root and freeze the camera.apk app on android as well.

I agree. It's not like these people are android software geniuses. They basically wanted to see that it was not easily tampered with to get the camera back. In all honesty, I plan on doing a low level removal (whether its the enterprise thing for iOS or freezing the camera.apk) and transfering my sticker over from my current phone to the new one.

Now the real question...Wait for the S4 and iphone (6.1 it's going to be called i hear?) or opt for a s3/iphone5 now...

 

[vshah]

^ nexus 4!

 

[z1ggy]

^ nexus 4!

Mehhhhh...I've been starting to think..I've been using iOS now for like 2.5 years and I am so used to it. I could probably just get away with disabling the camera in the settings and putting a password on it on to unlock it, and if I was questioned I'd say that I had it password set at the factory and I don't know it. Like I said, in 2.5 years I have only been stopped by security 2 times, and only once did they check to see if the camera icon was there..that was really it.

I'll be doing my research though in the mean time...I do like the nice big screen of that galaxy.

 

[amused21]

Install "cameraless" app from Google Play and it will disable your camera manually or automatically according to your location

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.manyera.simplecameradisable

 

[T_Yamamoto]

This thread is over 6 months old. It has been resolved already.