Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

Oversight VS Radio Silence

Compare Oversight VS Radio Silence and see what are their differences

Oversight logo Oversight

Get notified when an app accesses your Mac's camera or mic

Radio Silence logo Radio Silence

Radio Silence is a network monitor and firewall for the macOS. The software stops apps from making network connections. The firewall runs in the background and does not require an open window.
  • Oversight Landing page
    Landing page //
    2022-12-16
  • Radio Silence Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-06-16

Oversight features and specs

  • Real-Time Monitoring
    Oversight provides real-time monitoring of your Mac's webcam and microphone, alerting you whenever they are activated. This can help protect your privacy by ensuring that you are aware of any potential unauthorized access.
  • User Notifications
    The application notifies users with a pop-up alert whenever the webcam or microphone is activated. This allows users to immediately know when these features are in use, providing peace of mind and control over their devices.
  • Lightweight Application
    Oversight is designed to be lightweight, meaning it won't significantly impact your system's performance or battery life while running in the background.
  • Free to Use
    The application is freely available for download and use, making it accessible to a wide range of users who are concerned about their privacy.

Possible disadvantages of Oversight

  • Limited to Mac OS
    Oversight is only available for Mac users, which limits its audience to those who use Apple computers and excludes Windows or Linux users.
  • Basic Functionality
    While Oversight provides key privacy features, it lacks comprehensive options and advanced customization that might be found in more robust security solutions.
  • Reliance on User Reaction
    Oversight relies on users to respond to the notifications actively. If a user ignores or misses the alert, the application does not take any automatic action to stop unauthorized access.
  • Potential Compatibility Issues
    Updates to macOS may temporarily affect Oversight’s performance or compatibility, requiring quick updates from the developers to address any issues.

Radio Silence features and specs

  • Easy-to-Use Interface
    Radio Silence offers a simple, user-friendly interface that makes it easy for users to monitor and control their applications' network activity.
  • No Kernel Extensions
    It operates without using kernel extensions, which enhances system stability and security on macOS.
  • Lightweight Application
    Does not consume much system resources, ensuring that it doesn't slow down the performance of the computer.
  • Effective Network Monitoring
    Offers robust features for monitoring outgoing network connections, allowing users to block unwanted connections effectively.
  • Privacy Focused
    Enables users to protect their privacy by blocking applications from accessing the internet without permission.

Possible disadvantages of Radio Silence

  • macOS Only
    Radio Silence is only available for macOS, limiting its accessibility to users on other operating systems like Windows or Linux.
  • Limited Features
    Compared to some other firewall or network monitoring tools, Radio Silence offers fewer advanced features, focusing solely on blocking outgoing connections.
  • No iOS Support
    Does not offer an iOS version, which might be a limitation for users looking to control network activity across multiple Apple devices.
  • Paid Application
    Radio Silence is a paid application, which might deter some users looking for free alternatives.

Oversight videos

Asemblance: Oversight Review

More videos:

  • Review - Asemblance 2: Oversight - Quick Game Review | The Ruby Tuesday
  • Review - 20161208 - Oversight Review of the U.S. Navy’s Littoral Combat Ship (LCS) Program (ID: 105447)

Radio Silence videos

RADIO SILENCE REVIEW.... do yall hear sumn?.. | Casey Aonso

More videos:

  • Review - every time kat was emotional about radio silence in less than 2 minutes.
  • Tutorial - 1 to 5 star book wrapup | radio silence, enchantment of ravens, severance, how to date men, & more👫

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Oversight and Radio Silence)
Monitoring Tools
37 37%
63% 63
Security & Privacy
100 100%
0% 0
Firewall
0 0%
100% 100
Proxy
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

Share your experience with using Oversight and Radio Silence. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Oversight should be more popular than Radio Silence. It has been mentiond 21 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Oversight mentions (21)

  • Little Snitch: Network Monitor and Application Firewall for macOS
    See also: Patrick Wardle's excellent (and free) Lulu firewall: https://objective-see.org/products/lulu.html. He has a bunch of other excellent macOS security tools: Rei Key - identify keyloggers: https://objective-see.org/products/reikey.html Block Block - get an alert before an auto-start program gets registered: https://objective-see.org/products/blockblock.html Oversight - identify when the mic or camera is... - Source: Hacker News / 5 months ago
  • Picked up this beauty for college.
    Yup good advice! Instead of covering it physically you can use a trustworthy software solution OverSight https://objective-see.org/products/oversight.html. Source: almost 2 years ago
  • My wife said she could never tell if I was on a call in our home office.
    Something like https://objective-see.org/products/oversight.html proves you can detect applications that open a microphone session on macOS. Could set something up that listens to that, filters by process and toggles it on/off based on active microphone sessions. Source: about 2 years ago
  • What is this SUS orange dot????
    You can use Oversight to do that, but I'm a little confused by the location of the dot. Which OS version are you running? Source: over 2 years ago
  • Why is my camera coming on every ~30 minutes? MBP-16" 2021
    I am using OverSight ( https://objective-see.org/products/oversight.html ). Source: over 2 years ago
View more

Radio Silence mentions (12)

  • Stopping MDNSResponder from Sneakily Using DoH for DNS Lookups on macOS Ventura
    Agreed, though I combine using Little Snitch with Radio Silence: https://radiosilenceapp.com Little Snitch is great for when I want hyper granular control of a specific app's network permissions while Radio Silence gives me a super quick way to just block EVERYTHING for a particular app right away without even opening it the first time. - Source: Hacker News / almost 2 years ago
  • Little Snitch Mini
    I'm using radio silence for years and it is awesome :) https://radiosilenceapp.com. - Source: Hacker News / about 2 years ago
  • Do You Use A 3rd Party Firewall App On Your Mac ?
    Forgot to mention Radio Silence (commercial), seen by many as an easier introduction vs Little Snitch. Source: over 2 years ago
  • A little help
    Sorry for the late reply. I use Lulu which should be enough, but I also simultaneously use Radio Silence to be safe. Source: almost 3 years ago
  • Little Snitch vs TripMode 3 - monitoring my web traffic
    Little Snitch (LS) is considered by many to be the gold standard. The aforementioned Lulu has a good reputation. The app Hands Off! Appears to be no longer developed (site offline). Then there's Radio Silence that may well fit your needs. Finally, one or more apps by Murus may be of interest but AFAIK these are not easy to configure and may be overkill for the average Mac user. I'm not familiar with TripMode. Source: over 3 years ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Oversight and Radio Silence, you can also consider the following products

Micro Snitch - Micro Snitch is an ultra-light menu bar application that operates inconspicuously. It helps figuring out if someone’s spying on you.

Little Snitch - Little Snitch is a firewall application that monitors and controls outbound internet traffic.

AppZen - Artificial Intelligence for Real-Time T&E Fraud Detection

LuLu by Objective-See - LuLu is the free open-source macOS firewall that aims to block unauthorized (outgoing) network...

Camcovr - Stylish webcam covers that protect your privacy

TripMode - Manage your Mac's broadband usage while on a hotspot