How to find hidden cameras in your Airbnb, and anywhere else

In this article, Michael Grothaus tells us about the dangers of being spied when staying on Airbnb places.

There are lots of customers who have found out there were cameras spying on them. These cameras are usually on the bathroom and people may find themselves naked on a video on the Internet.

Other spies are more interested in your money, so they put the cameras in the living room and bedrooms, to try catching your passwords, emails and sites you use.

I have never used Airbnb. I prefer hotels and I like to think I can trust them. They have more to lose if a customer finds something like this.

If you use Airbnb or Couch Surfing, be careful. People are sneaky and you cannot trust anyone blindly.

You can read the entire piece here: How to find hidden cameras in your Airbnb, and anywhere else

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Here are a few parts of the article:

In recent months there’s been a number of alarming reports of Airbnb hosts installing hidden cameras in their properties but not disclosing them to the guests staying there.

KEEP AN EYE OUT FOR ANY ODD-LOOKING GADGETS
Let’s start with the most basic deterrent: keep your eyes open for any odd-looking gadgets in your Airbnb. Gadgets that look bulky or out of place in their surroundings may contain a hidden camera.
Still, if you see an alarm clock in a bathroom or some other place you wouldn’t expect one to be, that could be a tip-off that something is amiss. Similarly, if you see any devices, such as a USB wall plug pointed directly at a bed or shower, something could be up.
When trying to visually spot gadgets with hidden cameras, keep an eye out for devices that have a clean, unobstructed line of sight.

USE A FLASHLIGHT TO CHECK FOR CAMERA LENSES
Another trick to use to visually spot hidden cameras is the flashlight trick.
Turn out all the lights in the Airbnb and activate your flashlight. Slowly do a few sweeps of every room looking for any small, bright flashes of light relative to the surrounding area. If you spot any coming from an object, examine it more closely. You may have just found a hidden camera.

USE WI-FI-SNIFFING APPS TO CHECK FOR SMART DEVICES
Unfortunately, the above visual checks of an Airbnb aren’t always enough to spot hidden cameras, even for the keen-eyed person. The good news is there’s an even better way to identify hidden cameras.
So after arriving at your Airbnb and connecting to the host’s wireless network, whip out Fing and give that network a scan. It’ll show your device and any other connected to that same network.

USE AN RF DETECTOR
Of course, Fing and apps like it will only reveal connected hidden cameras if they are on the same wireless network as your smartphone. However, if the host has a second private wireless network that you don’t have access too, apps like Fing aren’t going to help you spot hidden cameras.
In that case, your only solution is to use a dedicated piece of hardware known as an RF detector. All wireless devices give off a radio frequency (RF)—it’s what allows Wi-Fi and Bluetooth to exist. An RF detector can hone in on devices emitting these RF signals, showing you where they are located in an Airbnb.

WHAT TO DO IF YOU FIND A HIDDEN CAMERA
The first thing you should do if you find an undisclosed hidden camera in your Airbnb is contact both the host and Airbnb directly and report the camera. It’s up to you if you also want to file a police report. Hidden camera laws vary by state and country.

Finally, it’s not just cameras you should keep an eye out for. As smart speakers like the Amazon Echo and Google Home become ubiquitous, you should keep an eye out for these too. While the host might be including the smart speaker in the rental for non-nefarious purposes, remember that all smart speakers have microphones, so it’s conceivable that someone with enough know-how could use these devices to listen in on your conversations remotely.

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