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Airbnb and security camera disclosure

jeffreybigham.com

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Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#91

Post by cm2187 »

jploh wrote: post #79
chimen wrote: post #3

I'm renting houses/apartments on AirBNB and place cameras outside the homes (to watch who's in front of the entrance door, activity). Placing them inside the home is a real privacy concern - a zone that I would never even consider. The reason for the cameras outside is to watch closely how many people enter as we're constantly fighting prostitution which leads to a pain with neighbors and other stuff.

We have two properties listed on Airbnb and have been a "superhost" for half a year. Our listing has extra fees if there are more than 2 people booking and there have been a number of instances where guests would sneak in extra people. We got a security camera for one of our listings recently. It's an attached suite with a private entrance. The camera is installed outside and it's disclosed with a check box toggled i…

Actually don't you want to highlight the disclosure of the camera to dissuade trouble makers from picking your place?

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#92

Post by basil-rash »

arusahni wrote: post #40
megous wrote: post #18

Bullshit reason given by the AirBnB. How is someone renting a room qualified to determine from a photo what kind of a device is there in the corner, or even notice. It can be anything, perhaps just a motion detection sensor or air quality monitoring or whatever. Also I do not scrutinize every single photo for details, but I read the description in its entirety. These things have to be stated in writing and they shoul…

There are also accessibility concerns/questions here. What if someone with poor (or no) eyesight is trying to book accommodation? Is there a screen-reader friendly description that says "Living room with security camera in the upper corner"?

Great point. I'd be interested to see what their response to that argument would be if it came from him pretending to have the disability. (or not even pretending)

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#93

Post by decebalus1 »

exhilaration wrote: post #74
bsenftner wrote: post #27

Airbnb is nobody's friend except the CEO and stockholders. Have a problem, tough. File a lawsuit, now we're communicating. This is how Capitalism works.

Lawsuit? LOL, read your TOS pal, you agreed to binding arbitration.

Can someone with legal experience care to chime in? I wasn't aware that binding arbitration can be enforced in this situation. I don't think you can sign your rights away like that. I recall I had a lease contract a while back which had something like that and my attorney laughed at it saying that it won't stand up in court.

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#94

Post by matz1 »

throw2016 wrote: post #47
matz1 wrote: post #31

I just assume that there will be camera constantly recording when I stay in airbnb, or anywhere really. They way I never have to worry about whether it exist or not. As recording technology becoming more and more advance, it's less and less reasonable to expect privacy. I rather adapt my life to fit this new culture.

That's because you don't really care about privacy. If it were something else 'you cared about' you would be saying something completely different and wondering why others don't share your concern. These things are generational and accumulated wisdom about privacy, surveillance and their cascading consequences into other aspects of society including sleepwalking into a police state are well known. For those on the ot…

You can choose to care about privacy, but then you have to accept that there will be cost associated with it, you have to worry all the time about every single thing to do. It mentally taxing and the cost is just going to be higher and higher.

>These things are generational and accumulated wisdom about privacy, surveillance and their cascading consequences into other aspects of society including sleepwalking into a police state are well known.

Human and its society always evolving and changing, you can't expect everything stay static, we human always have to adapt to changing society and environment.

>For those on the other side of the police state or who gain from these shifts

Then instead we should demand equal transparency for everyone, including those in the government.

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#95

Post by SilasX »

jartelt wrote: post #61
eric_b wrote: post #9

I used to use AirBnB all the time. Lately I've switched back to using hotels almost exclusively. The camera/privacy thing is a big part of it. I empathize with the hosts to a degree - you don't want people doing outrageous things in your home. But the hosts want their cake and to eat it too. Don't rent out your home if you don't want the risk of people damaging it! (As a minor aside, I've also noticed the quality of…

I made the switch as well and now only get an AirBnB when traveling with a large group of friends to remote destinations. For my own travel, I got so sick of the problems with key access. It's just too hard to coordinate with most hosts when you are in a foreign country and don't have cell service or wi-fi. It's also super annoying when any number of other issues show up: spotty wi-fi, no cable TV, no soap or shampoo…

>For my own travel, I got so sick of the problems with key access. It's just too hard to coordinate with most hosts when you are in a foreign country and don't have cell service or wi-fi.

Yeah, in Spring two years ago a friend an I did a Europe trip, with 4 Airbnbs bookings in total. On three of them we had issues getting in, where we had to contact the host, who was hard to reach or unavailable. And none would give us separate keys.

>And then hosts often expect you to wash your dishes and put laundry in the washer. Why do I need to do this when I am paying >$100 for a "cleaning fee"???

In fairness, cleaning involves a lot more than that step. But there does seem to be an arms race in how much of the cost they can cram into a hidden "cleaning" fee.

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#96

Post by matz1 »

alkonaut wrote: post #63
matz1 wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I didn't say giving bad actor an out. Just because you have information doesn't mean you are allowed to use the information to harm me. Its still illegal to do so.

I'd be hesitant to have surveillance equipment or anything that could be mistaken for surveillance equipment because a review that there is a camera in any of a landlord's properties would mean I'm not renting from them, ever. I really don't care whether they use whatever is recorded in a bad way or not.

Sure, its your choice.

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#97

Post by tomaskafka »

wil421 wrote: post #34
telecuda wrote: post #5

After a host made a suspicious/creepy comment about our stay, I started logging into host routers (creds usually printed on the device) and look at what other devices are connected. The camera may not be on that network, or not networked at all, but it’s a little peace of mind.

There is an app called Fing on iPhones and maybe Android. It will scan the WiFi you are on and give you a bunch of information. There’s also a few more network functions you can do. It recognizes phones, my plex server, and a brother printer at my house to name a few. No router login required just the WiFi password.

As a host, I'd get a router with a separate guest network anyway. Fing wouldn't find anything.

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#98

Post by Tsubasachan »

This is a tough one. There are some seriously nuts and creepy people out there. If you use Airbnb with your teenage kids and somebody has hidden a camera somewhere for their own personal pleasure what can Airbnb do? Inspect every property that they list?

At least with a hotel the owners usually care about their business and reputation.

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#99

Post by batmansmk »

eric_b wrote: post #9

I used to use AirBnB all the time. Lately I've switched back to using hotels almost exclusively. The camera/privacy thing is a big part of it. I empathize with the hosts to a degree - you don't want people doing outrageous things in your home. But the hosts want their cake and to eat it too. Don't rent out your home if you don't want the risk of people damaging it! (As a minor aside, I've also noticed the quality of…

Airbnb should be liable one way or another of those situations. They should at least inspect the places before accepting them in the network. They should inspect after a complaint.

I had a massive rat infestation in my Airbnb in Paris. I arrived at the place at night and I didn't see at first the forced temporary leave notice on the building door for all inhabitants. It took Airbnb 12h to respond to my emergency call. They didn't reimburse my first night, considering that I stayed and didn't allow me to review if I accepted the reimbursement of the rest of my booking. The wording was memorable "We contacted Thomas your host and he has agreed to ... ").

Re: Airbnb and security camera disclosure

#100

Post by jimmaswell »

eric_b wrote: post #9

I used to use AirBnB all the time. Lately I've switched back to using hotels almost exclusively. The camera/privacy thing is a big part of it. I empathize with the hosts to a degree - you don't want people doing outrageous things in your home. But the hosts want their cake and to eat it too. Don't rent out your home if you don't want the risk of people damaging it! (As a minor aside, I've also noticed the quality of…

How recent is lately? My experience a bit over one year ago was great. Likely highly dependent on the area.
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