It feels like increasing awareness of the ability of hackers to surreptitiously access webcams and microphones has helped spawn a cottage industry for webcam blockers and the like in recent years. And while a lot of these products look and act the same, a new Kickstarter project, simply called "Nope," is standing out by throwing in a sound blocker as well.
Made up of a 3.5mm headphone plug attached to a thin strip of metal, the Nope Sound Blocker is claimed to work with any device with a jack to match. According to Bungajungle, the device works by forcing whatever it is attached to to sense that another mic is installed, turning off any on-board microphones in order to block any potential eavesdroppers from listening in. Given the fact that it should work with everything from laptops to smartphones, that's a bold claim. But if it works as it says on the tin, that's pretty impressive for such a tiny package.
Along with the sound blocker, the Nope package also includes an elegant little webcam blocker that can easily cover cameras on nearly anything. A little sliding mechanism moves back and forth to cover and uncover a camera at will.
It's definitely a neat little setup if you're concerned about the possibility of someone listening in on your conversations or peering through your webcam. But, as with all Kickstarter projects, we'll have to wait until these start shipping to determine the quality of the hardware. Regardless, the campaign is already fully funded, and it's still totally open for 38 more days. There are different packs available, with webcam blockers starting at $10 for a pack of three, or sound blockers starting at $15 for one. Packs with both included start at $25.
