Someone said while staying at an Airbnb they found 11 hidden cameras. They found them by scrolling through the TV’s upper channels. Live feeds of every room.
Now they sweep every rental and hotel. So should you. This isn’t rare. 47% of Americans say they’ve found one in a rental, almost double from 2023. Five real cases:
Smoke detector, Scottsdale Airbnb. A family found one tucked inside the smoke detector over their kids’ bed last year. They’re now suing Airbnb and the homeowner.
Hocking Hills cabin, Ohio. A mom looked up in the bathroom and saw a green light blinking. Camera. Aimed at the toilet and shower. Investigators pulled 49 adults and 13 kids off the owner’s SD card.
Royal Caribbean cabin, Symphony of the Seas. An attendant let himself into staterooms with his keycard and rigged cameras in the bathrooms, then posted the videos to the dark web. Up to 960 passengers may have been filmed.
Ceiling fan, friend’s rental. A friend found one in the fan above the bed. It got even creepier when the homeowner started harassing her after finding her home address and phone number online.
Bathroom outlet, Wisconsin Airbnb. A guest discovered two cameras superglued behind the outlet plates, each one staring through a pinhole at the shower and the toilet. Gross.
No matter where you find your vacation rental, cruise or hotel room, you need to do a hidden camera sweep.
TV trick. Grab the remote. Scroll past standard channels into the higher numbers. Cheap wireless cameras broadcast there. Live feed of the room you’re in? That’s a camera. (How I found mine.)
Flashlight pass. Lights off. Open your phone flashlight. Sweep across smoke detectors, alarm clocks, USB chargers, remotes, wall outlets, fake plants, picture frames, well, everywhere. Camera lenses reflect a tiny pinprick of light.
Selfie-cam IR test. Lights off. Open your camera, switch to the front. Pan slowly. Night-vision cameras emit infrared, invisible to your eye but glowing white or purple on your screen.
Wi-Fi scan. Download Fing (iOS/Android). Connect to the room Wi-Fi, run a scan. Look for anything labeled “camera,” “IPCam” or any device you don’t recognize.
Mirror trick. Press a fingernail to any mirror that feels off. Gap to the reflection? Normal. No gap? Two-way. Walk.
Want peace of mind? Grab a $40 hidden camera detector (20% off). It scans for wireless signals, GPS trackers and pinhole lenses in seconds. Toss it in your bag. Use it for hotels, rentals, cruises, even rental cars.
Don’t touch it. Don’t unplug it. Don’t yell at the host. Photograph the device, and video what it’s aimed at and the room. Call police first, then the rental company, hotel or cruise manager on duty.
Comments
Nothing yet. Say the first thing.
Sign in to join the conversation.