What you need to know
- Facebook has issued an update to its iOS app fixing a camera bug reported earlier this week.
- The bug allowed Facebook to inadvertently activate your iPhone's camera as you used the app.
- Facebook says the bug has been fixed, and that it was indeed just a bug.
Facebook has issued an update for its iOS app, which patches a bug whereby the app would access your iPhone's camera as you scrolled through your news feed.
On November 12, it was reported that a bug in Facebook's iOS app seemed to show that whilst Facebook was open, you could see your iPhone's camera feed open and running in the background. As most postulated, it was just a bug. A report from The Verge noted that Facebook had inadvertently introduced the issue in a previous update to the app on November 8.
Whilst the bug was not around for long (just four days), and whilst there was no reported evidence of any photos or videos being uploaded to the site, Facebook has still acted quickly and released an update (opens in new tab) to fix the problem.
Version 247.0 of the app states:
We update the app regularly so we can make it better for you. Get the latest version for all of the available Facebook features. This version includes several bug fixes and performance improvements. Thanks for using Facebook!
This is Facebook's standard update copy, and is used to describe nearly all of its updates. As The Verge notes, the new app does not seem to be inadvertently activating the camera, so if this and Facebook are to be believed, the problem has been fixed!
If you're still worried about the problem, you can of course revoke Facebook's access to your camera in your iOS privacy settings. Facebook only requires access to your photos in order to upload pictures and videos, not your camera.
Stephen Warwick has written about Apple for five years at iMore and previously elsewhere. He covers all of iMore's latest breaking news regarding all of Apple's products and services, both hardware and software. Stephen has interviewed industry experts in a range of fields including finance, litigation, security, and more. He also specializes in curating and reviewing audio hardware and has experience beyond journalism in sound engineering, production, and design.
Before becoming a writer Stephen studied Ancient History at University and also worked at Apple for more than two years. Stephen is also a host on the iMore show, a weekly podcast recorded live that discusses the latest in breaking Apple news, as well as featuring fun trivia about all things Apple.
