Just found out the coffee shop I work from most days has a hidden camera in the bathroom

I was reading a local news article about a cafe in Denver getting fined for privacy violations. It mentioned the exact shop I go to three times a week. The article said they had a small camera above the bathroom door for 'security' but didn't tell anyone. I checked their website and there's no mention of it in their privacy policy. Has anyone else run into something like this at their regular spot?

4 comments

4 Comments

blair_davis3mo ago

Hidden cameras in a bathroom is a huge problem, but a small one above the door facing the common area is different. Isn't that just watching the hallway? Lots of stores have cameras pointed at the bathroom entrance to stop theft or vandalism. The real issue is if it was actually inside the stall, which the article doesn't say. Maybe they just did a bad job telling people.

wren8063mo ago

Guess I'll just hold it from now on. Nothing says "we value your privacy" like a secret camera pointing at the place you go to be, you know, private. Even if it's just the door, not telling people is super shady and probably why they got fined. It's the kind of thing that makes you side-eye every smoke detector in the place afterwards. They really thought a hidden bathroom camera was a normal security step and not a huge red flag.

jason1121mo ago

Three years back I found a hidden cam in an AirBNB bathroom and it was disguised as a USB charger, so yeah @blair_davis, just because it's "just the door" doesn't make it okay when they don't tell you about it.

abbyr961mo agoTop Commenter

Hold up, I'm gonna play devil's advocate here a little. We don't actually know for sure the camera was hidden or pointed at the stalls, right? The article says it was above the bathroom door, and a lot of places have cameras pointed at the entrance to the bathroom for security, not inside the actual bathroom. I've seen those in hotels and malls before, it's pretty common. Plus, if they got fined for not telling people, that's more of a paperwork and consent problem than a creep factor thing. I'm not saying it's great, but your mileage may vary on whether this is a huge deal or just a dumb oversight.