How do you check for hidden cameras? Sheriff explains
Reports of video voyeurism – using hidden cameras to spy on people, often for sexually perverse purposes – are on the rise.
From hotel rooms to cruise ship bathrooms to children’s bedrooms, "perverts and sick people" are getting creative in the ways they use technology for criminal voyeurism, Osceola County, Florida, Sheriff Marcos Lopez told FOX 35.
In one recent Florida case, a man was accused of using a cellphone charger to spy on his stepdaughter for years. The stepdaughter told investigators that he gave her the charging dock as a gift. She found a live stream video of her room on his cell phone, then tracked the view to the charger, finding the camera inside.
In March, a Royal Caribbean cruise employee was accused of hiding cameras inside bathrooms of passenger cabins to spy on guests, including underage girls.
And last year, a male flight attendant for American Airlines was accused of hiding a camera in an airplane bathroom in an attempt to record an underage girl.
How to check for hidden cameras
Hidden cameras inside police academy: lawsuit
West Virginia State Police are accused of physical and sexual abuse by 67 women, including claims of a hidden camera that was placed inside the women's locker room. Attorney Teresa Toriseva some women claim they were sexually abused and assaulted at the state police academy while others claim they were videotaped or photographed in the women’s locker room. More LiveNOW from FOX streaming video
Lopez said he’s seen cameras hidden in the following places, though there are many other hiding places to look for:
- Pictures hung on walls
- Working alarm clocks
- Smoke detectors
Other places could include kleenex boxes, phone chargers, hot tubs, various places in vacation rentals, air fresheners, and more.
One sign of a hidden camera could be a double of something that doesn’t make sense, like a smoke detector, for example.
Also consider where objects are placed – are they oddly facing a shower, bed or toilet?
If you are ever in doubt - don't touch it and call law enforcement, the sheriff warns.
"Better safe than sorry," said Lopez.