How to Force Firefox to Prompt for Camera Permission Again

Firefox stores a separate permission decision for every site that has ever requested camera access, completely independently from any other browser installed on the same machine. Once you respond to a prompt — Allow or Block — Firefox won't ask again for that exact site until the saved decision is manually cleared, regardless of how many times the page is reloaded or revisited.

This is standard, expected behavior rather than a bug, but it does mean an accidental "Block" click, or a decision made when circumstances were different, sticks around indefinitely until you specifically go looking for it — there's no automatic expiration or periodic re-prompting built in.

Step 1: Click the padlock (or shield) icon

At the left of the address bar while on the specific site.

Step 2: Look for "Clear permission and reload"

Next to the Camera entry, if a previous decision is shown.

Step 3: Alternatively, go to Firefox Settings → Privacy & Security → Permissions → Camera → Settings button

For a full list of every site with a saved decision.

Step 4: Find the specific site in that list, select it, and click "Remove Website."

Step 5: Reload the page.

Firefox will prompt fresh, as if visiting for the first time. ↑ Test with the widget above.

The Permissions settings page also has a "Remove All Websites" button if you want a completely fresh start across every site at once, rather than removing them one at a time.

How do I reset the Windows Camera app itself?

Go to Settings → Apps → Installed apps, find Camera, open its three-dot menu, and choose Advanced options → Reset. This clears the built-in Camera app’s own cache and settings without uninstalling it, which can fix a stuck, frozen, or permanently black preview even when the underlying device and driver are both working correctly. It only resets that one app — not your camera driver, and not other applications that use the camera.

Could my antivirus be silently blocking my camera?

Many third-party security suites — Bitdefender, Kaspersky, Norton, and ESET among others — include their own webcam-protection feature that runs independently of Windows’ own privacy settings. That means Windows can show camera access as fully permitted while the antivirus software blocks it anyway, at a layer Windows has no visibility into. Check the antivirus program’s own settings, usually under a Privacy, Webcam Protection, or similarly named section, and confirm your browser or conferencing app is on its allow-list.

How do I re-enable my camera in Device Manager if it's disabled?

Right-click the Start button → Device Manager, expand Cameras or Imaging devices, and look for a greyed-out icon or a small down-arrow badge. Right-click that entry and choose Enable device. This is a different action from updating a driver — a disabled device won’t respond to any other fix until it’s explicitly re-enabled here first, so it’s worth checking before assuming the problem is a driver or a permission.

Is Windows' own camera privacy toggle blocking access, separately from anything else?

Windows keeps a system-level camera permission at Settings → Privacy & security → Camera, completely separate from Device Manager, the Camera app, and any antivirus software. This one screen has a master Camera access switch plus a per-app list beneath it — both need to be on. It’s worth checking directly, since a camera can show as fully enabled and working in Device Manager while this toggle silently blocks every app from reaching it.