How to Tell If Someone Has Remote Access to Your Computer

Can you tell if someone is remotely accessing your computer?

“Sometimes I use Remote Desktop to remotely access my office computer and complete my work, and sometimes I let my friends or technicians remotely access my computer to troubleshoot my computer problem. I wonder if they can access my computer without my permission since they’ve already had the credentials. If they can, then how to tell if someone has remote access to your computer?”

How to detect remote access to my computer

The Windows built-in Remote Desktop has been widely used by many users. Some users may have the above-mentioned concern. Remote Desktop has been considered unsafe for 1) the client computer can remotely access the host computer even if Remote Desktop is not running on the host computer; 2) the client computer can save the credential and achieve remote access without the permissionof the host computer. 

Here the good news is that you can always tell if someone is remotely accessing your computer. Because if a computer is remotely accessing your computer, then the screen of your computer will be locked, which means no one can remotely access your computer without letting you know it. This is what happens when someone remotely accesses your computer.

When you unlock the computer, the remote connection automatically gets disconnected. So basically, no one can remotely access your computer without you knowing it. But if you need to leave your computer alone and don’t let anyone access it, you can disable the remote connection and enable it when you need it later. Here is how to disable remote connections.

Step 1. Press WIN + R and then type in “sysdm.cpl” to open the System Property.

Step 2. Switch to the Remote tab. Under the Remote Assistance section, clear the Don't allow remote connections to this computer option. Then click Apply and OK.

AnyViewer: Safe & secure remote desktop software

AnyViewer is a free and fast third-party remote desktop software for Windows computer access from Windows, Android, or iOS devices.The advantage of AnyViewer over Remote Desktop is that the client computer can’t remotely access the host computer if AnyViewer is not running on the host computer. You can set AnyViewer to not start with Windows, then no one can remotely access your computer unless you open the program.

If someone is connected to your computer, there will always be a chatbox on the right side of your screen. You can detect whether someone is accessing your computer.

AnyViewer supports both attended and unattended remote access, you can disable unattended remote access to one computer and it won't be accessed without your permission. Download, install, and run it (To access computers from mobile devices securely, you can download a mobile app from Google Play or App Store). Then, see how it works.   

Part 1. Unattended remote access with one click

✔ One-click access after devices logged in and are assigned to the same account 

Step 1. Go to Log in, and then click Sign up. (If you already have signed up on its official website, you can log in directly.)

Step 2. Fill in the signup information and you can see you successfully logged in to AnyViewer. Your device will automatically be assigned to the account you've logged in to.

Step 3. If you have logged in to the same AnyViewer account on the two devices, then you can achieve a direct connection by clicking One-click control.

✍ Note: You can also upgrade your account to a Professional or Enterprise plan, then you can assign more devices and enjoy other rights, including high-quality image, connecting in privacy mode, controlling more computers from one computer at the same time, etc. 

✔ Access with device ID and temporary/fixed security code

Step 1. On the to-be-accessed computer, go to Settings > Recipient. Tick the third option and then set the permanent security code.  Then, share the device ID and the fixed security code with the on the other end.

Note: If the controller is not very trustworthy, you can also give him a temporary security code. 

Step 2. On the computer that starts the remote control, input the device ID of the remote computer,  and click Connect. 

Step 3. Choose Input security code and enter the code. Click OK to achieve remote access.

You can disable unattended remote access by disabling the three options:  One-click connect to assigned device, set my security code, Allow temporary security code. 

Part 2.  Attended remote access

Step 1. On the computer that initializes remote access, input thedevice IDof the host computer and then click Connect.

Step 2. Click Send a control request to your partner.

Step 3. On the host computer, click Allowto make the connection successful.

Conclusion

This post mainly introduces how to tell if someone has remote access to your computer. Actually, no one can remotely access your computer without letting you know it. Because if a computer is remotely accessing your computer, then the screen of your computer will be locked. If you are still concerned about the security of your computer, you can stop the remote connection and re-enable it when you need it.