An I4S reader is not happy about one car owner’s system that “puts residential flats under surveillance”.
He writes: “A private car owner insists on mounting cameras on his car which is constantly placed in a public car park. This puts twenty private residential flats under surveillance.
“The residents disapprove and feel very uncomfortable. The car owner seems to be obsessed with his car being vandalised. This area is well lit, tranquil and has no history of vandalism.
“Is this legal or not? Should permission be sought from the police or local authority?
“There are no signs on the car showing the presence of cameras. Your help on this matter would be appreciated.
A,G.Siggers”
We put the question to our CCTV Doctor, Alistair Enser of Siemens Building Technologies Security Products.
Alistair writes: “This is always a good one and always open to debate.
“CCTV recording is governed by the Data Protection Act. One particular loophole open to interpretation is the use of personal recording for members of the public rather than commercial use.
“This is, for all intents and purposes, exempt, the reasons being that taking the legislation to the ‘nth’ degree would require us all to register to keep video footage of our holiday or children’s’ school nativity play – as this is stored video data.
“Extending this, personal use of CCTV may also be exempt for personal property provided that it is justifiable and controlled.
“With reference to signage, this is a requirement again for commercial use, but not necessarily personal. There are exceptional circumstances where this can be ignored, but the general case commercially is that signs are a requirement.
“So taking the question of the car – at the very least the resident has a duty to make sure that the video footage in the car is limited to the vehicle itself or close proximity.
“It would not be reasonable for the views to extend across the whole car park and potentially invade other peoples’ daily business. This could be restricted by having a shallow depth of focus on the camera and a very wide angle lens that effectively loses clarity at anything more than a few feet.
“The images from the cameras should be useable and admissible in court, otherwise there is no justification for taking them. The images must be controlled and not publicised for any use other than for the intended perceived criminal activity.
“Under data protection we all have the right to request sight of images taken of us to make sure they are lawful, so it would be worth testing that request with the individual.
“Ultimately because this is a slightly grey area, the best place to seek mediation would be the Data Protection Office. They can provide advice and help: www.ico.gov.uk (or ring 01625 54 57 45).
“It is possible that a local police or community support person may be happy to discuss the matter with the car owner, but it would be difficult for them to enforce anything unless the data protection office agrees that the usage is unreasonable, or unless the reader is able to convince them that the resident is, indeed, stalking or spying or making people feel threatened by their actions.
“I hope this helps.”
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