Turn off the camera on Surface Pro

The short answer

You can turn off the camera on a Surface Pro in several places, from a single call to the whole device. Use the camera button in a meeting app for one call. Use the Windows camera privacy settings to block apps. Disable the camera device in Windows Settings or Device Manager to switch it off system-wide. On many models, you can also disable it in Surface UEFI, the firmware setup screen. The main condition for anyone capturing speech: none of these camera controls mute the microphone. On a Surface Pro, the microphones are separate devices built into the tablet, so they must be controlled separately.

Ways to turn the camera off

Menu names below follow recent Windows versions and may differ slightly on your build or Surface model.

Method | Scope | Where to find it | Effect on the microphone

Camera button in a meeting app | Current call only | The video or camera toggle in the call controls | None; the app can still use the microphone

Camera privacy settings | All apps, or chosen apps | Settings > Privacy & security > Camera | None; the microphone has its own privacy page

Disable the camera device | System-wide until re-enabled | Settings > Bluetooth & devices > Cameras, or Device Manager > Cameras | None for the built-in Surface microphones

Surface UEFI device settings | Firmware level, before Windows loads | Surface UEFI > Devices (on models and firmware that offer it) | Cameras and on-board audio are listed separately, where available

Surface Pro models usually list a front camera and a rear camera as separate devices, so disable each one you want off. Some models also have an infrared camera for Windows Hello face sign-in. If you disable it, face sign-in stops working until you turn it back on.

What this means for capturing speech

• Camera off is not mute. To block audio, use the mute control in your meeting app. To block it across apps, use Settings > Privacy & security > Microphone, or disable the microphone in Sound settings.
• The opposite also holds. If you disable the camera for privacy but still want people to hear you, your audio should be unaffected. Confirm that the meeting app shows the expected input device.
• Using an external webcam with a built-in microphone? Disabling the Surface's own cameras does not choose that webcam's microphone for you. Select it as the input device in the meeting app, or in Windows Sound settings under Input.
• Disabling an external webcam's camera device may not disable its microphone. Webcams often appear to Windows as a separate camera device and audio device. Check whether the microphone still shows under Sound settings > Input.

Evidence gaps

No model-specific documentation or test results were supplied for this guide. It does not confirm which Surface Pro generations or firmware versions offer camera and audio toggles in UEFI. It also has no evidence on whether disabling the cameras affects any voice-processing features on newer Surface models. Microphone sound quality with the camera on or off was not measured. If these details matter, check the support documentation for your exact Surface Pro model. After making changes, record a short test in your meeting app or the Windows Sound Recorder.