system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
Is there a good reason to cover up your laptop webcam with a sticker or some tape, or is that just paranoid?

See a lot of people at uni with covered up webcams. I think it looks stupid, but I'm wondering if it's smart to do this or not.
gpt
I would like to kindly disagree with the other respondent here.

If your computer is connected to the Internet there is an implicit risk. Some people are targeted, others are just victims of opportunity.

If a botnet can exploit your machine it will; that's how they're programmed.

Is it a guarantee that if you are hacked you will be spied on? No, absolutely not, but you can't be certain you won't be hacked and you can't be certain you won't be spied on and blackmailed.

Is that paranoid? No, there is significant evidence supporting the fact that people are hacked all the time without being targeted.

I would suggest you cover your webcam until you need it, or use a machine with a mechanical aperture that lets you close it.