I’ve just finished a great sit. The pets were amazing, the house was great and the communication with the owners was easy as well. There was, however, the issue of indoor cameras. The dreaded indoor cameras.
When I arrived for a walk-through on the day of the sit, I noticed the outdoor ring camera (which is of course fine, but should have been mentioned beforehand). I then immediately see a camera in the kirchen. I don’t say anything because I was a bit surprised and I assumed they would turn it off. I could have said something, but I was trying to avoid confrontation.
I left it on that evening, and was going to try my best to just ignore it, despite knowing that it’s against THS policies. My attitude quickly changed when I noticed a canera IN THE BEDROOM. I had spent time in there with the pets, and also changed clothes, so I was morrified. I immediately unplugged it and took the SD card out. I then unplugged the kitchen camera the next morning.
My question is: what do I do now? I have taken the SD card with me, because I dont think they should have access to videos taken witbout my authorisation. I didnt turn either camera back on before I left. They haven’t said anything to me about them yet. Should I say something to them? Should I say something about it on the review? Or both? I dont want to start an argument, but I know I’m in the right and wnat to protect future sitters. Even if the bedroom camera was set up for the pets, it shouldn’t be there when I arrived.
Welcome @Aline
Well to be honest this sit sounds like a bit of a mess. The HO should not have indoor camera’s as it’s against the T&C’s of this site. You should have notified the owners as such and asked how to turn them off or you’d give 24 hours notice to leave due to the cameras.
I understand why you took the sd card but I think that puts you in a difficult position as they could say you’ve stolen it from them!
The first problem is, is that you are uncomfortable with confronting someone and ignored a not OK situation. You always have to be your own best friend and stick up for yourself. As soon as you noticed the kitchen camera while you were there you should have confronted them. You should have said this is against TH policies and you want it shut off or it will be grounds for you to give notice to leave. Then ask them are there any more cameras in the house. If you didn’t want to come off that strong or firm you could have said, maybe you didn’t realize that TH has a policy against cameras in the home. Please shut it off. Then ask if there are any other cameras in the house that need to be turned off. I would definitely mention it in the review. I think a camera in the room you sleep in is cringy and sounds like voyeurism. If the SD card contains naked pictures of you, do not return it.
Thanks for the welcome!
I understand your comment about notiying the owners, but the onus of that shouldnt fall on a sitter. I have seen so many posts about indoor cameras, and it’s clear that it’s an ongoing problem, despite THS making it clear that it’s against policies. Also, I found the bedroom camera late at night, and they were probbaly asleep. I was not going to sleep with it on.
Regarding the SD card, I again see your point, but I would rather be accused of stealing than have unauthorised images of me undressing in the hands of people who shouldn’t have those images in the first place.
There should be another way to tackle this, because if someone ignores obvious policies, the other party shouldn’t have to take on the responsibility of making them aware of such polícies.
I wish I had a clear solution, but I don’t.
I understand where you’re coming from and I agree we should definitely stand up for ourselves. However, sometimes people freeze up in moments of stress, and that’s what happened. Again, it’s frustrating having to inform someone of policies that they should have been well aware of.
I don’t feel comfortable at all returning a card that could have unauthorised videos of me.
Maybe there should be some sort of check-list that the owners have to check-off when siging up to THS. Because this is a huge violation of sitters’ privacy and Im sure so many people have been filmed and have no idea.
Sorry to hear about the indoor cameras @aline, sounds hideous. Both the answers you’ve had from two experienced sitters are wise, measured and fair but you don’t seem to like them. Yes it would be great if indoor cameras didn’t exist but they do so you have to handle them. You have three courses of action. 1) Go to THS support and ask advice 2) Be brave and tell the HO what you did & why and discuss a forward course of action 3) Ignore the whole thing and hope it doesn’t come up until after reviews. #thechoiceisyours
Unfortunate as it is, a sitter has to remind owners of the Code of Conduct.
To avoid confrontation in the future I recommend that you follow my method.
When communicating prior to accepting the sitting, ask them:
Are they aware of the Code of Conduct and there will be
No internal cameras
No Third Parties attending including members of the family
No tradesmen carrying out work
If you don’t like the answers then withdraw your application
@Aline, suggest report this to THS via online chat or support@trustedhousesitters.com.
In most jurisdictions, voyeurism is a criminal offense.
Well done on removing the SDcard - seems wholly appropriate.
But many cameras can also upload images/video to remove servers. So encourage further action, including asking Pet Parents to confirm in writing that any copies of security footage have been securely deleted. Hopefully THS Support has further guidance for you, and may consider action against the Pet Parent.
Encourage state facts in review.
Hidden bedroom cameras is hugely inappropriate.
I do appreciate their responses and never once said that I don’t like them. At all. I was offering my point of view and why I was struglging with this. Your response is a good example of why sometimes it’s hard for me to express myself in difficult situations. Me simply saying how I feel and my point of view in no way is saying I don’t like othe people’s points of view.nor is it me invalidating them.
I appreciate your suggestuons and will have a think about them. Thank you.
It’s in the past now. You should have mentioned it when you found it, to save the awkward position you are in now, but I understand not saying anything, when you already felt awkward about it.
They’d probably be horrified that they forgot to unplug them and made you feel totally uncomfortable, to the point where you took the SD card away with you and said nothing.
Write your review, but because you haven’t brought it up with them sooner, towards the end I’d say something like you discovered indoor cameras in two rooms which the owners must have forgotten to unplug… because that’s a very likely scenario. I wouldn’t mention the bedroom, as it will make them look suspect, when in reality, they’d probably just be watching their pets.
Say nothing about the SD card in your review. After they’ve read your review, and responded, I’d pop them a message about the SD Card, to say you didn’t know how to raise it with them, because you didn’t want them to end up feeling awkward while they were on their holidays, and explain you still have the SD Card, so they will need to buy another one, but say you’ll happily pay for a new card for them (because that part is theft… albeit wrong on their side). I can’t imagine they’d ask for any money from you at all, but it’s theft, so offer it anyway.
Hi @Aline, I’m sorry you’re going through this experience. Always the same: great pet-related situations, but humane behavior obscures the integrity and trust… TrustEDhousesitters’ weak point.
I would advice to contact THS Membership Services team to officially explain the situation. This way, you’ll get a response from the site and, at the same time, ensure that no one else will be affected, at least with these HOs.
The change is necessary and will be required to HOs that wish to continue using the service.
If you feel after the above, you could consider contacting the HO if they seem like “reasonable” people, using the platform’s chat if possible, explaining the situation and how you felt about the cameras issue. Depending on their response, you could decide how to proceed.
In any case, the behavior of these HOs is unacceptable and should not be repeated:
As stated in: Camera and Recording Devices Policy - TrustedHousesitters What we allow
Devices fitted to the exterior of a property or doorbell that monitor security of the outside areas such as the porch, driveway and garden. What we DON’T allow
Any active devices monitoring the interior of a property during a sit. Disclosure
Owners must disclose the presence of any internal and external cameras or recording devices when creating their home listing. Any internal cameras or recording devices must be disabled for the entire duration of the sit.
Regarding the review, do not hesitate to make explicit, in a respectful but genuine way, what has happened.
HO has the right to respond to the review and give their point of view on the situation, where “anything they say can be used against them”
Thank you for sharing your experience. It’s understandable that you don’t want to confront someone, but in this situation, whether accidentally or not, you are the person affected, and you have the right to complain and receive at least an apologyand the promise that it will not be repeated. Your actions may help others as well
I always ask them before the sit if they have any cameras. Most say outdoor cameras. I know one sit I was on had a camera on their lanai. Those cameras could be angled towards the sliding glass door to see inside. The homeowner said it wasn’t but you never really know what they are capturing.
It’s a very awkward situation when you find this. I don’t think you can be accused of stealing the SD card. I’m not really, not sure that they don’t already have it on their computer, however. I think I would’ve contacted them immediately, and taped something over each of the cameras. If they really just forgot they would be horrified. But since homeowners are not background checked, that’s a difficult one to figure out. So sorry you had to go through this.
Thanks everyone for your great advice. Im going to have a think about it, and decide what’s best for me and also for future sitters. I will definitely be takjng a stand, I just need to decide the best course of action. Thanks again
It is. And being recorded without someone’s previous consent is ilegal. I think it’s fair to see both sides. Being filmed without someone’s permission is a crime. In the UK, there must be signs alerting to the cameras, or the people being filmed should be made aware beforehand. Please don’t act as if I took it for no reason. There is video of me getting undressed. I understand that what I did was wrong, but don’t forget that what they did is also ilegal and a crime. I also felt vulnerable, scared, and acted out of fear. I would never take something for no reason at all.
Hi @Aline , apologies if I missed you mentioning it already, but did you ask the home owners if the videos were ‘on’? Is there a chance they were switched off the entire time and they forgot to tell you?
1st best time to bring up cameras is during the application process. 2nd was when you noticed it getting there. 3rd best time is right now. Who cares if it turns into an argument. Straight up ask them. If they say yes we record, you can remind them it’s against the terms and conditions and give them notice to leave. Or tell them to tell you where each and every camera is and turn them off and stay. You have to stand up for yourself, no one else will.
I’ve had a host say to me if they can leave the petcam on. Nope.
