How to get rid of the microphone icon on iPhone

The iPhone has many exciting features that make its use pretty user-friendly. Apple leaves no stone unturned regarding security. Hence, when the microphone icon appears on your screen, it has to mean something. So, what does the microphone icon on your iPhone mean?  

The microphone icon appears at the top of your screen because voice control has been activated. So, the icon will pop up when an app uses your iPhone’s microphone in the background. 

So, when you see the microphone icon on your screen, it lets you know whether to close an app or switch the app use of your microphone. This feature is quite helpful as it ensures your privacy is not breached, mainly when you do not know you might have accidentally engaged an app that is using your microphone.

Find out more about the microphone icon on your iPhone screen in this article. 

Table of Contents

1. How To Get Rid of the Microphone Icon on Your iPhone Screen
   • Method #1: Close the App 
   • Method #2: Reset App Privileges 
   • Method #3: Uninstall the App
2. Conclusion 

How To Get Rid of the Microphone Icon on Your iPhone Screen

When you give an app admin privileges to use your microphone, it wouldn’t ask your permission the next time it needs to use the mic. To a large extent, this is pretty convenient, but this does not mean your privacy cannot be breached. Apple is aware of this; hence, they came up with a brilliant way to mitigate the issue of apps using your microphone without your permission, especially in the background. 

When an app uses your iPhone’s microphone in the background, the only way you can get notified is that a microphone icon will pop up on your screen. Seeing this icon on your device can be bothersome, especially if you are focused on ensuring that whatever you do stays private. When this happens, it could be that an app you recently opened activated the microphone on your phone without you knowing. 

If you don’t want your privacy to be breached, there are several ways to prevent this issue from occurring. Below are some quick fixes you could use to get rid of the microphone icon on your iPhone screen. 

Method #1: Close the App 

As we said, most of the time, apps that activate the microphone icon on your iPhone are apps you recently used. When you can detect this app, closing it is a viable option for many to get rid of the icon. By closing the app, you don’t have to lose any data or stop using the app, and yet you can fix that concern of your conversation being recorded on some database. 

Here’s how to remove the microphone icon on your iPhone by closing the app.

1. Swipe up your screen from the bottom and pause in the middle.
2. In the app’s preview window, swipe left or right to find the app causing the issue and swipe up to close the app. 

Method #2: Reset App Privileges 

Another intelligent way to get rid of your device’s microphone icon is resetting app privileges. This option revokes permissions you might have given to an app. Hence, if the app needs to use your iPhone’s microphone, it has to ask for permission, and you can choose to permit it once or permanently. 

Here’s how to remove the microphone icon on your iPhone by resetting app privileges.

1. On your iPhone, tap on the Settings app. 
2. In the Settings app, find and click on “General” and tap “Reset”. 
3. Select the “Reset Location & Privacy” option and tap on the “Reset Settings” button to confirm. 

Unfortunately, if you must revoke the app’s permission to use the microphone, camera, and location, it cannot be done for only one app but on all apps.

Method #3: Uninstall the App

Uninstalling or disabling whatever app is causing this issue may seem a little too extreme, but it is a route to take when you no longer find the app helpful, yet it keeps bothering you. 

Here’s how to remove the microphone icon on your iPhone by uninstalling the app.

1. Find the app causing the issue, then from the home screen, tap and hold the app for a few seconds. 
2. When the icon starts to vibrate within its grid, tap on the remove icon or an “X” icon at the top of the app to remove it. 
3. Click on the “Delete app” to confirm you want to uninstall it, and you are done. 

Conclusion 

The microphone icon on your iPhone screen can raise many questions. While you can get rid of the icon using any of the methods above, we strongly recommend using the first option by simply closing the app. Some people even go as disabling the voice control on their device to get rid of the icon, but this limits your iPhone use, notably Siri. 

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