Granting USB camera access on a single Mac to a small set of people needs a practical approach. I will show a setup that keeps access tight, auditable and simple to use. The goal is that four named users can use the USB camera and others cannot. I cover MacOS user permissions, local controls, and USB device management options so you can pick what fits your environment.
Start with separate macOS accounts for the four users. Create local accounts for each person and give none of them admin rights. Use sysadminctl to script account creation if you prefer the command line:
- sudo sysadminctl -addUser username -fullName “Full Name” -password ‘Passw0rd’
Remove admin rights for other accounts with dseditgroup: - sudo dseditgroup -o edit -d otheruser -t user admin
Keeping users non-admin reduces the chance they can alter camera settings or install software that subverts controls. Next, set app-level camera permissions. Open System Settings, go to Privacy & Security, then Camera. Grant permission only to the specific apps the four users need. If they use the same apps, allow those apps for each account. If you manage multiple Macs or prefer scripted deployment, use an MDM to push a Privacy Preferences Policy Control (PPPC) profile. PPPC lets you approve an app to access the camera without prompting each user. That is the reliable enterprise route, but it requires an MDM and correct code-signing details for the apps.
MacOS does not offer a simple per-user toggle that maps to a single USB device. The OS enforces camera permissions per app and per user. For that reason, local user accounts plus app permission control is the cleanest, low-friction method. If you need stricter control, consider editing the TCC database only when you understand the risks. The TCC database governs privacy permissions. Changing it manually can require disabling System Integrity Protection and risks breaking updates. I do not recommend that for casual setups.
For USB camera access and USB device management, physical controls matter. A powered USB hub with per-port switches lets you physically grant or deny the camera without touching the Mac. A cheap USB switch between the camera and Mac works well for shared desks. If you want software gating, an MDM can enforce a device-level camera restriction. Many MDMs include a restriction to disable the camera entirely; that is useful for devices that must not use cameras. However, device-level blocks are binary for the whole Mac, so they do not give the select-four behaviour by themselves.
If you need user access control beyond app permissions, combine methods. Keep the camera physically connected only when required. Use a small script or launchd job that watches for the camera process and enforces session policies. On macOS the camera service runs as VDCAssistant while active. You can probe running processes:
- ps aux | grep VDCAssistant
Log camera use by checking the system log for VDCAssistant or related processes and retain that for auditing. If an unauthorised account attempts to access the camera, you can trigger an alert or force a logout. For logging at scale, forward relevant logs to a central collector.
Here is a practical plan for the four-user case. Create the four non-admin accounts. Install and approve only the apps they need under each account via System Settings, or push a PPPC profile using your MDM. Revoke admin rights from all other local accounts. Fit the camera to a powered USB hub with a switch and keep the hub off when not in scheduled use. If you have an MDM, schedule a profile that disables the camera outside working hours and allow it during booked sessions. Add simple monitoring that records when VDCAssistant starts. Keep a short runbook: who has access, which apps are approved, where logs live, and how to physically disconnect the camera.
I prefer this mixed approach because macOS handles privacy per user and per app, not per physical device. Separate accounts solve the identity problem. App permissions and PPPC solve the software problem. Physical switches solve the hardware problem. Implement the three together for a pragmatic, auditable solution that gives four people the access they need and denies everyone else.
