Apple’s New MacBook Disconnects Microphone “Physically” When Lid is Closed

Apple’s custom T2 security chip in the latest MacBooks includes
a new hardware feature that physically disconnects the MacBook’s
built-in microphone whenever the user closes the lid, the company
revealed yesterday at its event at the Brooklyn Academy of Music in
New York.

Though the new T2 chip is already present in the 2018 MacBook
Pro models launched earlier this year, this new feature got
unveiled when Apple launched the new Retina MacBook Air and
published a full security guide for T2 Chip yesterday.

Is It Helpful? Not Much

This feature is excellent as it makes impossible for malware to
access your built-in microphone when the lid is closed, but
honestly, it doesn’t help when you are most vulnerable, i.e.
while working.

Mac users will be still prone to malware, like the infamous
FruitFly
malware^[2], that can secretly turn
on your MacBook camera and
microphone^[3] to record video and
audio when your laptop lid is not closed.

In my opinion, such physical hardware disconnect feature would
be more helpful if manufacturers could offer a manual switch using
which users can turn on or off their device’s microphone or camera,
whenever required.

More About Apple T2 Security Chip

Anyway, besides this, Apple’s T2 chip also offers other security
features that are impressive like including the Secure Enclave
coprocessor that protects your MacBook’s encryption keys,
fingerprint data, and secure boot features.

Along with the security and convenience of Touch ID, MacBooks
with the T2 chip provide “a level of privacy and security
protections never before seen on Mac,” according to Apple.

The T2 chip offers some non-security features as well, like an
image signal processor that enables enhanced tone mapping, controls
the ambient sensor, the system management controller (SMC), white
balancing to the FaceTime HD camera, Apple video encoder, audio
controller, and enables “Hey Siri.”