A MAN who was horrified after spotting his neighbour had installed a security camera that pointed directly into his garden decided to take revenge.
Annoyed with the “nosy” behaviour, the young man took matters into his own hands to get his privacy back for him and his family.
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In a clip on his @scoobz_13 account, he showed how he had put up a large screen on top of his shed to block the camera’s view.
He wrote: “After my neighbour spying on my family, I’ve had to erect this monstrosity.
“POV: when your neighbour’s hobby is filming your garden…. not anymore.”
Social media users were horrified by the neighbour’s camera and many flocked to the comments to share their advice.
One wrote: “that’s clearly only there to spy let’s be honest.”
A second added: “Good idea but I’d make something higher and more permanent.”
A third praised him saying: “Good one.”
However, some pointed out that he may need to do more to get full privacy.
One shared: “Do I see three cameras all on the same side of his house?”
Another agreed: “Is no one talking about the bigger camera he has at the same side that’s not covered by the umbrella?”
Prior to trying to conceal the camera, he shared how he had confronted the guy next door.
But much to his surprise, rather than simply move the camera or point it in another direction, his “neighbour from hell” had decided to install the second camera.
Posting on social media, the content creator shared a short clip as he sat in his garden, giving his followers a close-up look at his neighbour’s motion detector device.
Alongside the clip, the man attached an audio that said: “Ask our neighbour to respect our privacy – his solution? More surveillance.
“Welcome to the reality show I didn’t sign up for.”
Not only this, but the man, who feels like he’s on Big Brother, then wrote: “When you politely ask your neighbour not to film in your garden, so he naturally installs a second one.”
As well as this, in another video, the man zoomed in on the security camera and asked: “Is this weird or is it me? The only thing he can view is me in my garden.”
As he showed off his outside area, which was being spied on by his neighbour, he fumed: “Here I am, sat in my garden and look at that there – staring right at me.”
Is it legal to film a neighbour’s garden?
IT’S typically not illegal for a neighbour’s security camera to capture images beyond their property boundary, but it can be intrusive and raise privacy concerns.
If your CCTV footage captures images beyond your property boundary then you are subject to the data protection laws.
Legal experts say you will be regulated under the General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act.
You may be familiar with this when it comes to websites storing your data or companies sending you emails.
Joanne Ellis, a partner at Warrington-based solicitor Stephensons, said if CCTV being captured falls outside of a homeowner’s property boundaries, the person capturing the CCTV becomes a data controller.
This creates a set of responsibilities for the CCTV owner.
The person captured has a right to be told a CCTV system is being used and what information is being recorded.
Ellis said a subject access request can be made if a neighbour refuses to do this.
She said: “You can ask for the footage captured of you to be deleted – but it can be refused if there is a legitimate reason to keep it such as it captures a burglar.
“Any third parties that the CCTV is disclosed to, such as police and insurers, are also obliged to process the footage in accordance with the rules.”
