How to view applications using microphone on Windows 10

Have you ever wondered what applications on your computer are using your microphone? A new feature of Windows 2019 update will answer you that question. This feature works for both desktop and Microsoft Store applications.

1. Ways to troubleshoot audio on Windows 10
2. How to manage and improve sound quality in Windows 10
3. 8 useful Windows 10 audio control tools

How to view the application using a microphone

If an application is using a microphone, you will see a microphone icon in the notification area (system tray). It is black if you use the Windows 10 light theme and white when using the Windows 10 dark theme.

When hovering over this icon, Windows will tell you which application is currently using the microphone. If more than one application uses a microphone, Windows will tell you the number of applications to use.

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If you don't see the microphone icon, check the overflow menu by clicking on the up arrow to the right of the notification icon. If the microphone icon is hidden, you can drag and drop it into the notification area on the Taskbar for easier access and better visibility.

This icon only appears when there is an application in use or listening to the microphone. If not, it means that no application is currently using the microphone.

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If many applications are using a microphone, it will not say the specific application name, you need to click on the icon to view it. This will take you to Settings> Privacy> Microphone , scroll down to find the application with the text Currently in use in red.

One thing to note here is that there are two lists, one for the Microsoft Store application and one for the traditional desktop application.

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How to view the application that used the microphone before

Even if no application is currently using the microphone and the icon does not appear, you can check which applications use the microphone by going to Settings> Privacy> Microphone to open the microphone settings.

Scroll down to the list of applications that have access to the microphone and look at the Last accessed text to see the exact date and time the application uses the microphone.

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You can also access the Camera frame by going to Settings> Privacy> Camera to see when the last application uses the computer webcam. However, there is no similar notification icon for webcam access because Microsoft thinks that when using a webcam, there will be a light indicator for users to know.

According to Microsoft, desktop applications can interact directly with the microphone or webcam hardware and bypass the Windows 10 privacy controls and monitoring.

In other words, desktop applications can access the microphone and webcam without showing up in this list. An application can access the microphone hardware at a low level and the microphone icon may not appear.

However, Windows will detect microphone access from most desktop applications. But special encrypted RAT malware can evade this discovery.

I wish you all success!