[SOLVED] Are used webcams safe?

[Jachays]

Looking at buying a used webcam off Facebook marketplace since new ones are sold out everywhere but I am worried about safety. Can the original owner install malware or other viruses that execute when plugged in for the first time? Thanks for the answers and sorry for my ignorance! To be clear I am not asking about functional performance since that is always an issue/risk when buy used.

 

[USAFRet]

Looking at buying a used webcam off Facebook marketplace since new ones are sold out everywhere but I am worried about safety. Can the original owner install malware or other viruses that execute when plugged in for the first time? Thanks for the answers and sorry for my ignorance! To be clear I am not asking about functional performance since that is always an issue/risk when buy used.

There is no storage space or similar in a webcam to install malware to.
Get the drivers direct from the manufacturers site, and all is OK.

 

[USAFRet]

Now...if you buy some crappy cheap thing from a no-name manufacturer, that may indeed come with its own built in malware or other vulnerabilities.
Don't do that.

But 'used' has nothing to do with it.