What are the microphone and camera indicator dots in iOS 14+ and Android 12+, and how do they change the security model for covert recording?

• A.A) iOS 14 introduced green (camera) and orange (microphone) indicator dots in the status bar that illuminate whenever any app accesses camera or microphone; Android 12 added similar privacy indicators. These cannot be suppressed by any app (enforced at the OS level); they provide a visible UI signal to users that recording is occurring, making covert recording while the user is looking at the screen harder for malicious apps.
• B.B) The indicators only appear for apps that have been granted permanent (not one-time) microphone/camera permission; temporary grants are indicated differently.
• C.C) The indicators are in-app UI elements; apps can hide them by drawing over the status bar.