PASSENGERS travelling with United, American Airlines and Delta will now find the cameras built into the in-flight entertainment screens covered up.
The airlines recently made the announcement despite previously denying the cameras were used for spying.
Getty – Contributor
Earlier this year it was revealed that the entertainment systems located on the back of some airlines’ seats have small cameras built into them.
These are reportedly a common feature from manufacturers, who use standard tablets for the screens, and they are not activated.
According to a statement obtained by Fox News, a United Airlines spokeswoman claimed: “None of these cameras were ever activated, and we had no plans to use them in the future; however, we took the additional step to cover the cameras.
“The cameras are a standard feature that manufacturers of the system included for possible future purposes such as video conferencing.”
Delta told Buzzfeed they would be adding the covers “as a visible way to reassure customers”.
An American Airlines spokesperson also told the website they were installing covers for the cameras.
The new stickers were recently spotted by Twitter user Sri Ray while travelling on United Airlines.
Singapore Airlines dealt with a similar issue in February, when a passenger discovered a camera embedded in the in-flight monitor.
The cameras were discovered on the airlines’ newer planes, Forbes reported.
The airline said on Twitter that the cameras are in “selected Business, Premium Economy and Economy Class.”
At the time, the company said the cameras were disabled and that there were no plans to use them.
The Forbes report cited an airline spokesman interviewed in another paper that said the systems can be found on their Airbus 350, A-380 and other planes in the fleet.
The systems were produced by Panasonic.
Some flights are scrapping in-flight entertainment screens altogether.
American Airlines removed them on some flights in 2017 while Etihad recently announced their removal in economy.
Sun Online Travel has contacted American Airlines, United and Delta for additional comment.
This article was originally published on Fox News and has been reproduced with permission.
