diff --git a/CLAUDE.md b/CLAUDE.md
index eb1523e..2fe4662 100644
--- a/CLAUDE.md
+++ b/CLAUDE.md
@@ -18,6 +18,20 @@ Laptops with `charge_control_end_threshold` support (ThinkPad, Framework, etc.)
 - Toggle flow: `moonarch-batsaver-toggle` (user script) reads sysfs, decides 80↔100, calls `pkexec /usr/bin/moonarch-batsaver-apply $NEW` for the privileged sysfs+state write step. Standard pkexec prompt (password once per session cache)
 - On desktops without battery support the feature is hidden entirely
 
+## Camera Switch
+
+Cameras are **off after every boot** and get switched on deliberately, per camera, from the quickshell bar. That inverts the privacy problem instead of chasing it: a camera that is not authorized cannot be opened at all, so no usage heuristic is needed (`PrivacyIndicator` can only see PipeWire capture — see its own section and `DECISIONS.md` 2026-07-29).
+
+- **Mechanism:** `authorized` on the USB device (`/sys/bus/usb/devices/<id>/authorized`). Writing `0` removes the `/dev/videoN` nodes and the PipeWire node; writing `1` brings them back and `uvcvideo` rebinds itself. USB-only by construction — a MIPI/IPU6 built-in camera has no `authorized` attribute, so the module self-hides there and the feature does not exist on such machines.
+- **Identification:** a camera is a USB device whose descriptor blob carries interface class `0x0e` (video). Read from `/sys/bus/usb/devices/<id>/descriptors`, which is world-readable and — measured — stays complete and unchanged while the device is deauthorized (1420 bytes, same interface classes, on and off). The interface directories are the opposite: they drop to zero while off, which is why they cannot be the source. `bDeviceClass` is useless here too (every composite camera reports `0xef`). **`wc -c` on that file lies** (reports 65553 for every device); walk the TLV and stop on `bLength == 0`.
+- **Scripts:** `moonarch-camera-list` (unprivileged, prints `id|vid:pid|label|on/off|video[+audio]`), `moonarch-camera-toggle <id> <0|1>` (unprivileged, dispatches via pkexec), `moonarch-camera-apply` (privileged, re-derives every precondition from kernel data), `moonarch-camera-boot` (run by `moonarch-camera.service` at boot).
+- **No state file.** The absence of persisted state *is* the feature — nothing to restore, nothing to tamper with. An earlier draft kept a registry of known cameras in `/var/lib/moonarch/`; that directory is group-writable by `wheel`, so a privileged helper validating against it would be trusting a caller-writable allowlist. The helper now trusts only `descriptors`, `uevent` (`DEVTYPE=usb_device`) and the resolved path under `/sys/devices/`.
+- **A hot-plugged camera stays on.** No udev rule: plugging a camera in is a deliberate act, and a rule on `add` would leave a fresh webcam dead until a password prompt. The boot service is the only enforcement point. Known gap: `udevadm settle` only waits for already-queued events, so a camera that enumerates very late (behind a dock) can stay on after boot until switched.
+- **A switch cuts the whole USB device**, in both directions: a webcam's built-in microphone goes down with its camera (and on the internal ThinkPad camera, its DFU interface — fwupd cannot update it while off), and switching one **on** authorizes every other function that device carries. `moonarch-camera-list` therefore reports all notable interface classes, and the popout names them per row ("also audio"), in `Theme.red` when a device brings something that has no business on a camera — input, storage, network, smartcard, wireless, printer. Deliberately shown, not blocked: a strict allow-list would reject legitimate hardware (the internal camera carries a DFU interface, and multimedia devices commonly expose HID for their buttons), while the deception this defends against needs someone to physically plug a device in — so the honest fix is making the device's real capabilities visible at the moment of arming it.
+- **Widget:** `CameraIndicator` sits in the connectivity `ModuleBox`; `md-webcam` in `Theme.accent` when any camera is armed, `md-webcam-off` in `Theme.subtext0` when all are off. Deliberately **not** `Theme.red` — red is the `PrivacyIndicator`'s colour for actual capture, and armed-but-idle is the weaker statement. `CameraPopout` (registered as `camera`) lists one `Toggle` per camera; a switch in flight dims the row via `opacity` rather than `enabled: false`, which would drop the control out of the Tab chain. Only one `pkexec` runs at a time so prompts cannot stack.
+
+Rationale + measurements: `DECISIONS.md` (2026-07-29).
+
 ## Nightlight (Blue Light Filter)
 
 Waybar toggle for wlsunset (Wayland-native blue light filter), persistent state via systemd:
@@ -78,7 +92,7 @@ quickshell is the **default bar and notification daemon**, spawned by niri as `q
 
 - **Own popouts:** a composed widget carries its own popout as a `Component` and renders it in the shared morphing host. Pattern (see any indicator, e.g. `AudioIndicator.qml`): an inline `Component { AudioPopout { popouts: root.popouts } }`; the widget declares a `popoutName` and registers on completion (`popouts.register(popoutName, popoutComponent, root, payloadFn)`), then its click handler calls `popouts.toggleByName(popoutName)`. The widget file needs `pragma ComponentBehavior: Bound` so the popout resolves `root` when the shared host instantiates it. The low-level `popouts.open(component, rect, payload)` still exists for non-registered popouts (Tray). The host anchors the popout body to the trigger's on-screen box and picks the side from it: **left-aligned** when the trigger sits in the left half of the screen (so left-cluster popouts grow rightward and stay on-screen), **right-aligned** otherwise (`PopoutHost.qml` `frame.leftAnchored`). The anchor rect carries the trigger's left edge + width; both `openByName` and Tray's direct `open()` pass that box.
 
-- **Popouts by keybind:** registered popouts are addressable by name through the `PopoutRouter` singleton, which exposes an `IpcHandler { target: "popout" }` with `toggle`/`open`/`close`. A niri keybind fires `qs -c moonarch ipc call popout toggle <name>` (e.g. `Mod+A` → `audio`, in `defaults/xdg/niri/config.kdl`). The router routes to the focused monitor's `PopoutState` via `Niri.activeOutput` (workspace `is_focused` → `output`, matched against `screen.name`); an open popout grabs the keyboard (Escape closes). Names: `audio backlight network bluetooth nightlight cpugov battery notifications media launcher`. Tray is not keybind-addressable.
+- **Popouts by keybind:** registered popouts are addressable by name through the `PopoutRouter` singleton, which exposes an `IpcHandler { target: "popout" }` with `toggle`/`open`/`close`. A niri keybind fires `qs -c moonarch ipc call popout toggle <name>` (e.g. `Mod+A` → `audio`, in `defaults/xdg/niri/config.kdl`). The router routes to the focused monitor's `PopoutState` via `Niri.activeOutput` (workspace `is_focused` → `output`, matched against `screen.name`); an open popout grabs the keyboard (Escape closes). Names: `audio backlight network bluetooth nightlight cpugov battery notifications media launcher camera`. Tray is not keybind-addressable.
 
 - **Launcher:** `Launcher.qml` is the first widget in the left cluster (an apps glyph) and owns `LauncherPopout.qml` — an application launcher over `DesktopEntries.applications` (search field + keyboard-navigable icon+name list; ↑/↓ select, Enter/click launch via `entry.execute()`, Esc close; app icons via `Quickshell.iconPath`). It registers under `launcher` (so it is IPC-addressable) and is bound to `Mod+Space` (`qs -c moonarch ipc call popout toggle launcher`, in `config.kdl`) in addition to icon-click. Scope is app-launch (drun) only; `walker` stays installed and keeps the other modes — `Super+C` still opens walker's clipboard, and walker remains the run-command/calc launcher (no longer on a keybind).
 
diff --git a/DECISIONS.md b/DECISIONS.md
index 9b0a976..7850dd9 100644
--- a/DECISIONS.md
+++ b/DECISIONS.md
@@ -261,3 +261,10 @@
 - **Tradeoffs**: Matching `media.class` strings is what waybar's privacy module does (`Stream/Input/Audio`, `Stream/Input/Video`, `stream.monitor` are literals in its binary), so this is the established signal rather than an invention — but it needs `PwObjectTracker` over **nodes and groups**, because a bound group gives `state` and only a bound node gives `properties`. Excluding desktop-audio recording could not use pipewire's `stream.monitor`: quickshell does not expose that property (measured `undefined` on a live monitor capture), so the peer's `media.class` (`Audio/Sink`) is the discriminator instead. Exact string equality also drops the `…/Internal` variants (the Focusrite mic-split plumbing), which is intended. Camera use through raw V4L2 (`/dev/video*` without the portal) stays undetectable — no pipewire node appears at all, verified with an ffmpeg capture; a `/dev/video*` observer was scoped out (see below).
 - **How**: `PrivacyIndicator.qml` — `PwObjectTracker { objects: nodes.concat(groups) }`; `capturing(streamClass, ignoredPeer)` walks active link groups and matches either endpoint's `media.class`, so `micActive = capturing("Stream/Input/Audio", "Audio/Sink")` and `screenActive = capturing("Stream/Input/Video", "")`. Tooltip for the video glyph is now "Screen or camera in use" (the class covers both). Verified end-to-end against the repo component in a probe panel: idle → hidden; `pw-record` from the default source → mic glyph (rendered, screenshot-checked) while browser playback ran throughout, i.e. the playback false-positive is gone; `pw-record` from a sink monitor → still hidden; `gst pipewiresrc` on the camera → video glyph; back to hidden. The screencast path shares the `Stream/Input/Video` class but was not exercised (no screen-recording tool installed, and the portal picker needs interaction).
 - **Rejected**: Detecting raw V4L2 camera use. `fuser`-style polling was rejected as a 24/7 process spawn for an event that occurs rarely. inotify was measured as a viable event-driven alternative (`IN_OPEN`/`IN_CLOSE_WRITE` do fire on `/dev/video0`), but a pure device *query* without any streaming (`v4l2-ctl --list-formats`) raises identical events, so device enumeration — browsers on a camera permission prompt, conference apps at startup — would flash the glyph; `open()` is not `VIDIOC_STREAMON`. Together with per-node filtering (video0/video2 are capture, video1/video3 metadata), watch re-arming after unplug, and the `video` group requirement, the accuracy was not worth it. waybar has the same blind spot for the same reason.
+
+## 2026-07-29 – Camera switch: USB authorization instead of usage detection
+- **Who**: Dominik, ClaudeCode
+- **Why**: The privacy indicator can only see PipeWire capture, so raw V4L2 access stays invisible (entry above). Detecting it was rejected: `inotify` fires `IN_OPEN` for a pure device query (`v4l2-ctl --list-formats`) exactly as for a real capture, so device enumeration by a browser would flash the glyph. Switching cameras off by default inverts the problem — an unauthorized camera cannot be opened at all, which is a stronger guarantee than any heuristic and is exactly answerable.
+- **Tradeoffs**: (1) **Mechanism** — `authorized` on the USB device beats `modprobe -r uvcvideo` (per device rather than all cameras at once, and no reboot after 59 toggles as the Codeberg camera-control tool reports for the module path) and beats interface-level tricks (there is no per-interface authorize for non-wireless USB). Measured: `authorized=0` drops the `/dev/videoN` nodes immediately, udev emits `remove` per node, the PipeWire node disappears; `authorized=1` brings the nodes back, `uvcvideo` rebinds itself, capture works, and PipeWire re-exposes the camera a few seconds later under a **new** node id. Cost: the switch cuts the whole USB function, so a webcam's built-in microphone dies with it (`3-1` carries `01/01,01/02`) and the internal camera's DFU interface too (`5-1` carries `fe/01`, so fwupd cannot update it while off) — surfaced in the popout. USB-only by construction: MIPI/IPU6 cameras have no `authorized`, the widget self-hides there. (2) **Identification** — `descriptors` (world-readable, `-r--r--r--`) carries every interface class and is the only source that works in **both** states. Measured across a full deauthorize cycle of the internal camera: the blob stays at 1420 bytes with identical interface classes while `authorized=0`, whereas the interface directories drop from 5 to 0 — so they cannot be the gate. `bDeviceClass` is useless as well (`0xef` on every composite camera). `moonarch-camera-list` correctly reported the switched-off camera as `off`, i.e. it stays listable and switchable with no state of our own. Verified across 21 USB devices that interface class `0x0e` selects exactly the two cameras (hubs `09`, HID `03`, audio `01`, AV adapter `11`). Gotcha: `wc -c` reports 65553 for that file on every device — the real length is 1420 / 1332 bytes here, so the TLV walk must stop on `bLength == 0`. (3) **No state file** — an earlier draft kept a registry of known cameras under `/var/lib/moonarch/`; rejected because that directory is group-writable by `wheel`, so the privileged helper would have been validating its target against a caller-writable allowlist. It now trusts only kernel data: `descriptors`, `DEVTYPE=usb_device` from `uevent`, and the `authorized` symlink resolved into `/sys/devices/`. Note `/sys/bus/usb/devices/<id>` is itself a symlink, so confinement cannot be checked against that prefix. (4) **Boot enforcement** — a systemd oneshot, not a udev rule. A rule on `add` would also disable **hot-plugged** cameras, and plugging one in is a deliberate act; a fresh webcam that is dead until a password prompt is the wrong default. Accepted gap: `udevadm settle` only waits for already-queued events, so a camera enumerating very late behind a dock can stay on until switched. (5) **Auth** — plain `pkexec` with the standard password prompt, as `moonarch-batsaver-*` (2026-05-04); no polkit rule, since a no-password rule would let any process in the session re-arm the camera unnoticed and defeat the switch. Popout-spawned prompts are typeable thanks to the `OnDemand` keyboard focus fix (2026-07-09).
+- **How**: Four scripts in `defaults/bin/` — `moonarch-camera-list` (unprivileged; prints `id|vid:pid|label|on/off|video[+audio]`, sanitizes device-supplied product strings so they cannot forge columns), `moonarch-camera-toggle` (unprivileged pkexec dispatch, passes the exit code through), `moonarch-camera-apply` (privileged; validation ladder = value ∈ {0,1}, bus-port id shape, device exists, `authorized` is a real file, resolved path under `/sys/devices/`, `DEVTYPE=usb_device`, video interface class present, then an idempotence skip before the write), `moonarch-camera-boot` (enumerates via `-list`, writes 0 to each). New unit `defaults/etc/systemd/system/moonarch-camera.service` (`Type=oneshot`, `ConditionPathExistsGlob=/sys/class/video4linux/video*`, batsaver's hardening block, enabled from `moonarch.install`; `Type=oneshot` also satisfies `moonarch-doctor`'s oneshot handling). QML trio `CameraService` / `CameraIndicator` / `CameraPopout`: the service keeps a `probed` flag so a failed list never empties the bar widget, an optimistic `pending` map so a row reacts before the password prompt returns, a single in-flight `pkexec` so prompts cannot stack, and treats exit 126 as a silent cancel. Its `udevadm monitor` watches the **usb** subsystem, not `video4linux` — unplugging an already switched-off camera emits no video4linux event, and the widget would keep listing a device that is gone.
+- **Follow-up (same day, after audit)**: A security audit of the finished code found that the camera gate accepts a device as soon as *any* interface reports class `0x0e`, while `authorized=1` re-authorizes the **whole** device — so a composite device with an alibi video interface plus a hidden keyboard would appear in the popout as a camera and go live on the first switch-on. Rejected blocking it by allow-list or deny-list: the internal camera itself carries a DFU interface (`0xfe`) and multimedia devices commonly expose HID for their buttons (measured: the USB audio device at `3-2.2` reports `01,01,01,01,01,03`), so a class filter would lock out legitimate hardware, while the attack needs physical access to a port. Instead `moonarch-camera-list` now reports every notable interface class and the popout names them per row, in red for classes that have no business on a camera. Also fixed from the same audit: `textFormat: Text.PlainText` on the device-supplied label and in the shared `Tooltip` (matching `NotifToast`/`NotifCenter`, which already guard foreign text), and the label sanitizer now strips the invisible/directional Unicode range (`U+200B..U+200F`, `U+202A..U+202E`, `U+2066..U+2069`) under `LC_ALL=C`, so a device cannot make its name render as another one's — verified that `|`, control characters, RLO and zero-width characters are removed while umlauts survive. Left as known and accepted: a TOCTOU window between the checks and the write that would need dedicated switching hardware inside a millisecond gap after authentication, and the absence of `CapabilityBoundingSet`/`SystemCallFilter` in the unit, which is inherited from `moonarch-batsaver.service` and would be a shared change.
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 3de2d80..fdc9622 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -118,13 +118,15 @@ defaults/
     moonarch-batsaver-toggle      Toggle battery charge limit (80% ↔ 100%)
     moonarch-nightlight           Toggle wlsunset blue light filter on/off
     moonarch-waybar-nightlight    Waybar module: nightlight status
+    moonarch-camera-list          List cameras with their on/off state
+    moonarch-camera-toggle        Switch one camera on or off (via pkexec)
+    moonarch-camera-boot          Switch all cameras off (run at boot by moonarch-camera.service)
 
   shell/zshrc                   Zsh config: prompt, aliases, FZF, completion
   etc/greetd/                   greetd daemon + greeter Niri config
   etc/moongreet/                moongreet configuration
   etc/systemd/user/             Systemd user services (cliphist, kanshi, walker, nautilus)
-  etc/systemd/system/           System service (battery conservation restore on boot)
-  etc/udev/rules.d/             udev rules (battery threshold permissions)
+  etc/systemd/system/           System services (battery conservation restore, camera switch-off on boot)
   backgrounds/wallpaper.jpg     Default wallpaper (shared by desktop, greeter, lock screen)
 ```
 
diff --git a/defaults/bin/moonarch-camera-apply b/defaults/bin/moonarch-camera-apply
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..1ca6334
--- /dev/null
+++ b/defaults/bin/moonarch-camera-apply
@@ -0,0 +1,83 @@
+#!/bin/sh
+# ABOUTME: Privileged helper invoked via pkexec from moonarch-camera-toggle; writes USB authorized.
+# ABOUTME: Every precondition is re-derived from kernel data — nothing the caller says is trusted.
+
+set -eu
+
+PATH=/usr/bin:/bin
+export PATH
+
+ID="${1:-}"
+VAL="${2:-}"
+
+die() {
+    echo "$1" >&2
+    exit 1
+}
+
+[ "$#" -eq 2 ] || die "Usage: moonarch-camera-apply <usb-id> <0|1>"
+
+case "$VAL" in
+    0 | 1) ;;
+    *) die "Invalid value: '$VAL' (expected 0 or 1)" ;;
+esac
+
+# A USB device id is a bus-port path: digits, then dash, then dot-separated port numbers.
+# Rejects '/', '..', leading or trailing separators, whitespace and glob characters, so the id
+# cannot address anything outside the device directory. DECISIONS.md (2026-03-31) records a past
+# command injection from an unquoted expansion behind pkexec — hence the strict shape first.
+case "$ID" in
+    "" | *[!0-9.-]* | *..* | *.. | .* | -* | *. | *-) die "Invalid device id: '$ID'" ;;
+esac
+case "$ID" in
+    *-*) ;;
+    *) die "Invalid device id: '$ID'" ;;
+esac
+case "$ID" in
+    *-*-*) die "Invalid device id: '$ID'" ;;
+esac
+
+DEV="/sys/bus/usb/devices/$ID"
+[ -d "$DEV" ] || die "No such USB device: $ID"
+[ -f "$DEV/authorized" ] || die "Device cannot be authorized: $ID"
+if [ -L "$DEV/authorized" ]; then
+    die "Unexpected symlink: $DEV/authorized"
+fi
+
+# /sys/bus/usb/devices/<id> is itself a symlink into /sys/devices, so confinement is checked
+# against the resolved target rather than the bus path.
+REAL=$(readlink -f "$DEV/authorized")
+case "$REAL" in
+    /sys/devices/*/authorized) ;;
+    *) die "Refusing to write outside /sys/devices: $REAL" ;;
+esac
+
+# Reject interfaces and anything that is not a USB device proper.
+grep -qx "DEVTYPE=usb_device" "$DEV/uevent" || die "Not a USB device: $ID"
+
+# Camera gate: the descriptor blob must carry a video interface (class 0x0e). This is what makes
+# the helper structurally unable to deauthorize a hub, keyboard or disk, and it works whether the
+# device is currently on or off.
+is_camera=$(od -An -v -tu1 "$DEV/descriptors" 2>/dev/null | awk '
+    { for (k = 1; k <= NF; k++) b[n++] = $k }
+    END {
+        p = 0
+        while (p < n) {
+            l = b[p] + 0
+            if (l == 0)
+                break
+            if (b[p + 1] == 4 && b[p + 5] + 0 == 14) {
+                print "yes"
+                exit
+            }
+            p += l
+        }
+    }')
+[ "$is_camera" = "yes" ] || die "Not a camera: $ID"
+
+# Writing the value it already has would tear the device down and rebuild it for nothing.
+if [ "$(cat "$DEV/authorized" 2>/dev/null)" = "$VAL" ]; then
+    exit 0
+fi
+
+printf %s "$VAL" > "$DEV/authorized" || die "Failed to write $DEV/authorized"
diff --git a/defaults/bin/moonarch-camera-boot b/defaults/bin/moonarch-camera-boot
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..d396928
--- /dev/null
+++ b/defaults/bin/moonarch-camera-boot
@@ -0,0 +1,27 @@
+#!/bin/sh
+# ABOUTME: Switches every camera off at boot — the privacy default is "off until asked for".
+# ABOUTME: Run by moonarch-camera.service; holds no state, the absence of state is the feature.
+
+set -eu
+
+PATH=/usr/bin:/bin
+export PATH
+
+# Cameras enumerate early, but a device behind a hub or dock can still be in flight. settle only
+# waits for events already queued, so a very late arrival can stay on until the user switches it —
+# accepted, since it is the same class of gap as plugging one in later.
+if command -v udevadm >/dev/null 2>&1; then
+    udevadm settle --timeout=10 || true
+fi
+
+# Reuse the enumeration rather than carrying a second copy of the descriptor walk.
+LINES=$(/usr/bin/moonarch-camera-list || true)
+[ -n "$LINES" ] || exit 0
+
+printf '%s\n' "$LINES" | while IFS='|' read -r id hw label state kind; do
+    [ -n "$id" ] || continue
+    auth="/sys/bus/usb/devices/$id/authorized"
+    if [ -f "$auth" ] && [ "$state" = "on" ]; then
+        printf 0 > "$auth" || echo "Failed to switch off camera $id" >&2
+    fi
+done
diff --git a/defaults/bin/moonarch-camera-list b/defaults/bin/moonarch-camera-list
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..5ea65c3
--- /dev/null
+++ b/defaults/bin/moonarch-camera-list
@@ -0,0 +1,93 @@
+#!/bin/sh
+# ABOUTME: Lists cameras as `id|vid:pid|label|on/off|video[+audio]`, one line each, for the camera module.
+# ABOUTME: Identifies a camera by USB interface class 0x0e in the kernel's descriptor blob.
+
+# The interface *directories* only exist while the device is authorized, so they cannot answer
+# "is this a camera" for a switched-off one. The raw descriptor blob can: it is allocated at
+# enumeration, stays world-readable, and carries every interface class.
+# Prints "video" plus every other notable function the same physical device carries. Switching a
+# camera on authorizes the *whole* device, so anything else on it becomes active too — the popout
+# shows this so an innocuous-looking "camera" that also brings a keyboard is visible as such.
+classes_of() {
+    od -An -v -tu1 "$1/descriptors" 2>/dev/null | awk '
+        { for (k = 1; k <= NF; k++) b[n++] = $k }
+        END {
+            p = 0
+            while (p < n) {
+                l = b[p] + 0
+                if (l == 0)          # malformed or short read — stop rather than walk off
+                    break
+                if (b[p + 1] == 4) { # interface descriptor
+                    c = b[p + 5] + 0
+                    if (c == 14)
+                        seen["video"] = 1
+                    else if (c == 1)
+                        seen["audio"] = 1
+                    else if (c == 3)
+                        seen["input"] = 1
+                    else if (c == 8)
+                        seen["storage"] = 1
+                    else if (c == 2 || c == 10)
+                        seen["network"] = 1
+                    else if (c == 11)
+                        seen["smartcard"] = 1
+                    else if (c == 224)
+                        seen["wireless"] = 1
+                    else if (c == 7)
+                        seen["printer"] = 1
+                }
+                p += l
+            }
+            if (!seen["video"])
+                exit
+            out = "video"
+            # Fixed order so the field is stable across runs.
+            split("audio input storage network smartcard wireless printer", order, " ")
+            for (i = 1; i <= 7; i++)
+                if (seen[order[i]])
+                    out = out "+" order[i]
+            printf "%s", out
+        }'
+}
+
+# Product strings come from the device, i.e. from whoever plugs it in. Strip the field separator and
+# control characters so a hostile string cannot forge extra columns, and the invisible/directional
+# Unicode range (U+200B..U+200F, U+202A..U+202E, U+2066..U+2069) so a name cannot be made to *look*
+# like a different device. LC_ALL=C keeps this byte-oriented, which is what the \x patterns need.
+sanitize() {
+    LC_ALL=C sed 's/[|[:cntrl:]]//g
+        s/\xe2\x80[\x8b-\x8f\xaa-\xae]//g
+        s/\xe2\x81[\xa6-\xa9]//g
+        s/   */ /g
+        s/^ //
+        s/ $//' | cut -c1-64
+}
+
+for dev in /sys/bus/usb/devices/*-*; do
+    [ -d "$dev" ] || continue
+    id=${dev##*/}
+    case "$id" in
+        *:*) continue ;; # interface, not a device
+    esac
+
+    kind=$(classes_of "$dev")
+    [ -n "$kind" ] || continue
+
+    label=$(cat "$dev/product" 2>/dev/null | sanitize)
+    [ -n "$label" ] || label=$(cat "$dev/manufacturer" 2>/dev/null | sanitize)
+    [ -n "$label" ] || label="USB camera"
+
+    if [ "$(cat "$dev/authorized" 2>/dev/null)" = "0" ]; then
+        state=off
+    else
+        state=on
+    fi
+
+    printf '%s|%s:%s|%s|%s|%s\n' \
+        "$id" \
+        "$(cat "$dev/idVendor" 2>/dev/null)" \
+        "$(cat "$dev/idProduct" 2>/dev/null)" \
+        "$label" \
+        "$state" \
+        "$kind"
+done | sort -t'|' -k1,1
diff --git a/defaults/bin/moonarch-camera-toggle b/defaults/bin/moonarch-camera-toggle
new file mode 100755
index 0000000..30f4034
--- /dev/null
+++ b/defaults/bin/moonarch-camera-toggle
@@ -0,0 +1,17 @@
+#!/bin/sh
+# ABOUTME: Switches one camera on or off; dispatches the privileged sysfs write via pkexec.
+# ABOUTME: Usage: moonarch-camera-toggle <usb-id> <0|1>. Exit code is pkexec's (126 = prompt cancelled).
+
+ID="${1:-}"
+VAL="${2:-}"
+
+# Shape check only — moonarch-camera-apply re-validates everything as the privileged side.
+case "$ID" in
+    ""|*[!0-9.-]*) exit 1 ;;
+esac
+case "$VAL" in
+    0 | 1) ;;
+    *) exit 1 ;;
+esac
+
+pkexec /usr/bin/moonarch-camera-apply "$ID" "$VAL"
diff --git a/defaults/etc/systemd/system/moonarch-camera.service b/defaults/etc/systemd/system/moonarch-camera.service
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..67ee0b8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/defaults/etc/systemd/system/moonarch-camera.service
@@ -0,0 +1,22 @@
+# ABOUTME: Switches all cameras off on boot — the privacy default is "off until asked for".
+# ABOUTME: Only runs on machines that have a video4linux device at all.
+
+[Unit]
+Description=Switch off all cameras on boot
+After=sysinit.target
+ConditionPathExistsGlob=/sys/class/video4linux/video*
+
+[Service]
+Type=oneshot
+ExecStart=/usr/bin/moonarch-camera-boot
+NoNewPrivileges=true
+ProtectHome=true
+PrivateTmp=true
+ProtectKernelModules=true
+ProtectControlGroups=true
+RestrictNamespaces=true
+RestrictRealtime=true
+LockPersonality=true
+
+[Install]
+WantedBy=multi-user.target
diff --git a/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/CameraIndicator.qml b/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/CameraIndicator.qml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..da77149
--- /dev/null
+++ b/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/CameraIndicator.qml
@@ -0,0 +1,68 @@
+// ABOUTME: Camera bar widget — shows whether any camera is armed; click opens the switch popout.
+// ABOUTME: Backed by the CameraService singleton; hidden on machines without a camera.
+pragma ComponentBehavior: Bound
+import QtQuick
+
+Item {
+    id: root
+    // Hover affordance — dim slightly on hover so the clickable icon feels interactive (state color untouched).
+    opacity: hover.hovered ? 0.8 : 1.0
+    Behavior on opacity {
+        NumberAnimation {
+            duration: Theme.animDurationShort
+        }
+    }
+    property var popouts: null
+    property string popoutName: "camera"
+
+    // Register with the shared popout state so this popout is addressable by keybind (niri IPC).
+    Component.onCompleted: if (root.popouts)
+        root.popouts.register(popoutName, popoutComponent, root, null)
+
+    // This widget's popout — handed to the shared animated host on click.
+    Component {
+        id: popoutComponent
+        CameraPopout {
+            popouts: root.popouts
+        }
+    }
+
+    visible: CameraService.hasCameras
+    implicitWidth: visible ? iconText.implicitWidth : 0
+    implicitHeight: Theme.barHeight
+
+    Text {
+        id: iconText
+        height: parent.height
+        verticalAlignment: Text.AlignVCenter
+        font.family: Theme.fontFamily
+        font.pixelSize: Theme.fontSize + 1
+        // Accent means armed, not recording — Theme.red stays reserved for the PrivacyIndicator's
+        // "something is capturing right now".
+        color: CameraService.anyOn ? Theme.accent : Theme.subtext0
+        // md-webcam / md-webcam-off
+        text: CameraService.anyOn ? String.fromCodePoint(0xf05a0) : String.fromCodePoint(0xf1737)
+    }
+
+    MouseArea {
+        anchors.fill: parent
+        onClicked: {
+            if (!root.popouts)
+                return;
+            root.popouts.toggleByName(popoutName);
+        }
+    }
+    HoverHandler {
+        id: hover
+    }
+    Tooltip {
+        anchorItem: root
+        shown: hover.hovered
+        text: {
+            const on = CameraService.cameras.filter(c => c.on);
+            if (on.length === 0)
+                return qsTr("All cameras off");
+            return qsTr("Camera armed: ") + on.map(c => c.label).join(", ");
+        }
+    }
+}
diff --git a/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/CameraPopout.qml b/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/CameraPopout.qml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..53f991b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/CameraPopout.qml
@@ -0,0 +1,113 @@
+// ABOUTME: Camera popout — one switch per camera, switched off by cutting USB authorization.
+// ABOUTME: Backed by the CameraService singleton. Registered as the "camera" popout.
+pragma ComponentBehavior: Bound
+import QtQuick
+
+PopoutPanel {
+    id: root
+    property var popouts: null
+    title: qsTr("Cameras")
+    panelWidth: 320
+
+    // The popout instance survives reopens for the slide animation, so re-read on show.
+    readonly property bool shown: root.popouts && root.popouts.hasCurrent
+    onShownChanged: if (root.shown)
+        CameraService.refresh()
+    Component.onCompleted: CameraService.refresh()
+
+    // Reachable by keybind even while the indicator is hidden, so it needs an empty state.
+    Text {
+        width: root.contentWidth
+        visible: !CameraService.hasCameras
+        text: qsTr("No cameras")
+        color: Theme.subtext0
+        font.family: Theme.fontFamily
+        font.pixelSize: Theme.fontSize
+    }
+
+    Column {
+        width: root.contentWidth
+        spacing: 2
+
+        Repeater {
+            model: CameraService.cameras
+
+            delegate: ListRow {
+                id: camRow
+                required property var modelData
+                readonly property bool waiting: camRow.modelData.id in CameraService.pending
+                width: parent.width
+                implicitHeight: 40
+                // Dim while the password prompt is up — deliberately not `enabled: false`, which
+                // would drop the row and its Toggle out of the Tab chain.
+                opacity: camRow.waiting ? 0.5 : 1.0
+                // Whole row is a hit target; the Toggle sits above it and consumes its own clicks.
+                onClicked: CameraService.toggle(camRow.modelData)
+
+                Column {
+                    anchors.left: parent.left
+                    anchors.right: camToggle.left
+                    anchors.rightMargin: 8
+                    anchors.verticalCenter: parent.verticalCenter
+                    spacing: 0
+
+                    Text {
+                        width: parent.width
+                        text: camRow.modelData.label
+                        color: Theme.text
+                        // The label is a USB string descriptor, i.e. supplied by the device.
+                        textFormat: Text.PlainText
+                        elide: Text.ElideRight
+                        font.family: Theme.fontFamily
+                        font.pixelSize: Theme.fontSize
+                    }
+                    Text {
+                        width: parent.width
+                        // The switch authorizes the whole USB device, so every other function on it
+                        // goes live too. Naming them beats a device that merely looks like a camera.
+                        text: {
+                            const f = camRow.modelData.functions;
+                            if (f.length === 0)
+                                return camRow.modelData.id;
+                            return camRow.modelData.id + " · " + qsTr("also ") + f.join(", ");
+                        }
+                        // Audio on a webcam is normal; a keyboard or a disk is not.
+                        color: camRow.modelData.unexpected.length > 0 ? Theme.red : Theme.subtext0
+                        textFormat: Text.PlainText
+                        elide: Text.ElideRight
+                        font.family: Theme.fontFamily
+                        font.pixelSize: Theme.fontSize - 2
+                    }
+                }
+
+                Toggle {
+                    id: camToggle
+                    anchors.right: parent.right
+                    anchors.verticalCenter: parent.verticalCenter
+                    checked: CameraService.stateOf(camRow.modelData)
+                    onToggled: CameraService.toggle(camRow.modelData)
+                }
+            }
+        }
+    }
+
+    Text {
+        width: root.contentWidth
+        visible: CameraService.lastError.length > 0
+        wrapMode: Text.WordWrap
+        text: CameraService.lastError
+        color: Theme.red
+        font.family: Theme.fontFamily
+        font.pixelSize: Theme.fontSize - 1
+    }
+
+    Text {
+        width: root.contentWidth
+        visible: CameraService.hasCameras
+        wrapMode: Text.WordWrap
+        text: qsTr("Cameras are switched off at every boot. Switching one on asks for your password.")
+        color: Theme.subtext0
+        font.family: Theme.fontFamily
+        font.pixelSize: Theme.fontSize - 2
+    }
+}
diff --git a/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/CameraService.qml b/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/CameraService.qml
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..aa3aef0
--- /dev/null
+++ b/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/CameraService.qml
@@ -0,0 +1,137 @@
+// ABOUTME: Camera service — camera list and on/off switching via the moonarch-camera-* helpers.
+// ABOUTME: Event-driven through `udevadm monitor` on the usb subsystem, slow fallback poll.
+pragma Singleton
+import QtQuick
+import Quickshell
+import Quickshell.Io
+
+Singleton {
+    id: root
+
+    property var cameras: [] // [{ id, hw, label, on, mic }]
+    property bool probed: false // true once a list ran successfully
+    property var pending: ({}) // id -> target state while a switch is in flight
+    property string lastError: ""
+
+    // Only claim "no cameras" once something was actually enumerated — a widget that vanishes
+    // from the bar on a transient failure is worse than one that shows a stale state.
+    readonly property bool hasCameras: root.probed && root.cameras.length > 0
+    readonly property bool anyOn: root.cameras.some(c => c.on)
+    readonly property bool busy: applyProc.running
+
+    // The optimistic target wins while a switch is in flight, so the row reacts to the click
+    // instead of waiting for the password prompt.
+    function stateOf(cam) {
+        if (cam && cam.id in root.pending)
+            return root.pending[cam.id];
+        return cam ? cam.on : false;
+    }
+
+    // Functions that have no business on a camera. Switching the camera on authorizes the whole
+    // USB device, so these become active too — worth showing rather than silently allowing.
+    readonly property var unexpectedFunctions: ["input", "storage", "network", "smartcard", "wireless", "printer"]
+
+    // moonarch-camera-list prints `id|vid:pid|label|on/off|video[+more]` per camera.
+    function parse(txt) {
+        const out = [];
+        for (const line of txt.split("\n")) {
+            if (!line)
+                continue;
+            const f = line.split("|");
+            if (f.length < 5)
+                continue;
+            const funcs = f[4].split("+").filter(x => x !== "video");
+            out.push({
+                id: f[0],
+                hw: f[1],
+                label: f[2],
+                on: f[3] === "on",
+                functions: funcs,
+                unexpected: funcs.filter(x => root.unexpectedFunctions.indexOf(x) >= 0)
+            });
+        }
+        root.cameras = out;
+        root.probed = true;
+    }
+
+    Process {
+        id: listProc
+        command: ["moonarch-camera-list"]
+        stdout: StdioCollector {
+            id: listOut
+        }
+        onExited: (code, status) => {
+            if (code === 0)
+                root.parse(listOut.text);
+        }
+    }
+    function refresh() {
+        if (!listProc.running)
+            listProc.running = true;
+    }
+
+    // The helper raises a pkexec password prompt, so this process can stay alive for a while.
+    // Only one switch at a time — two concurrent calls would stack two password dialogs.
+    Process {
+        id: applyProc
+        property string target: ""
+        onExited: (code, status) => {
+            // Must be a *fresh* object: assigning back the same reference is a no-op for QML
+            // bindings (verified — mutating in place or reassigning the identical object does not
+            // re-evaluate anything that reads `pending`).
+            const p = Object.assign({}, root.pending);
+            delete p[applyProc.target];
+            root.pending = p;
+            // 126 is pkexec's "authorization dismissed" — cancelling is deliberate, so it is not
+            // an error worth reporting. Anything else non-zero is.
+            if (code === 0)
+                root.lastError = "";
+            else if (code !== 126)
+                root.lastError = qsTr("Switching failed (exit ") + code + ")";
+            root.refresh();
+        }
+    }
+
+    function setCamera(cam, on) {
+        if (!cam || root.busy || cam.id in root.pending)
+            return;
+        const p = Object.assign({}, root.pending);
+        p[cam.id] = on;
+        root.pending = p;
+        applyProc.target = cam.id;
+        applyProc.command = ["moonarch-camera-toggle", cam.id, on ? "1" : "0"];
+        applyProc.running = true;
+    }
+
+    function toggle(cam) {
+        if (cam)
+            root.setCamera(cam, !root.stateOf(cam));
+    }
+
+    // Watch the usb subsystem, not video4linux: unplugging an already switched-off camera emits
+    // no video4linux event at all, and the widget would keep listing a device that is gone.
+    Process {
+        id: monitorProc
+        command: ["udevadm", "monitor", "--udev", "--subsystem-match=usb"]
+        running: true
+        stdout: SplitParser {
+            splitMarker: "\n"
+            onRead: () => debounce.restart()
+        }
+    }
+    Timer {
+        id: debounce
+        interval: 300
+        onTriggered: root.refresh()
+    }
+
+    // Fallback poll — catches a died monitor process, and a re-enabled camera whose driver binds
+    // a moment after the event.
+    Timer {
+        interval: 60000
+        running: true
+        repeat: true
+        triggeredOnStart: true
+        onTriggered: root.refresh()
+    }
+}
diff --git a/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/Tooltip.qml b/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/Tooltip.qml
index 6d9b010..9269f8c 100644
--- a/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/Tooltip.qml
+++ b/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/Tooltip.qml
@@ -51,6 +51,9 @@ PopupWindow {
             anchors.centerIn: parent
             text: root.text
             color: Theme.text
+            // Tooltips carry foreign strings (window titles, USB device names), and AutoText would
+            // render markup-looking content as rich text — same guard as the notification widgets.
+            textFormat: Text.PlainText
             font.family: Theme.fontFamily
             font.pixelSize: Theme.fontSize
         }
diff --git a/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/qmldir b/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/qmldir
index 1ab74c5..9a58946 100644
--- a/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/qmldir
+++ b/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/qmldir
@@ -7,6 +7,8 @@ Battery Battery.qml
 BatteryPopout BatteryPopout.qml
 BluetoothIndicator BluetoothIndicator.qml
 BluetoothPopout BluetoothPopout.qml
+CameraIndicator CameraIndicator.qml
+CameraPopout CameraPopout.qml
 Clock Clock.qml
 CpuGovIndicator CpuGovIndicator.qml
 CpuGovPopout CpuGovPopout.qml
@@ -33,6 +35,7 @@ PopoutPanel PopoutPanel.qml
 PopoutState PopoutState.qml
 PrivacyIndicator PrivacyIndicator.qml
 singleton Backlight Backlight.qml
+singleton CameraService CameraService.qml
 singleton CpuGovService CpuGovService.qml
 singleton IdleInhibit IdleInhibit.qml
 singleton NetworkService NetworkService.qml
diff --git a/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/shell.qml b/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/shell.qml
index 04a9111..b12852e 100644
--- a/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/shell.qml
+++ b/defaults/xdg/quickshell/moonarch/shell.qml
@@ -69,6 +69,9 @@ ShellRoot {
                         BluetoothIndicator {
                             popouts: bar.popouts
                         }
+                        CameraIndicator {
+                            popouts: bar.popouts
+                        }
                     }
                 },
                 // Output levels — volume + brightness.
diff --git a/scripts/moonarch-doctor b/scripts/moonarch-doctor
index 47c48c3..063162a 100755
--- a/scripts/moonarch-doctor
+++ b/scripts/moonarch-doctor
@@ -174,6 +174,13 @@ else
     pass "moonarch-batsaver (skipped — no battery threshold support)"
 fi
 
+# Camera switch-off service (only on machines with a camera)
+if compgen -G "/sys/class/video4linux/video*" >/dev/null; then
+    check_system_service moonarch-camera
+else
+    pass "moonarch-camera (skipped — no camera)"
+fi
+
 # --- 3. User Services ---
 
 section "User Services"