Well this sounds very creepy, but imagine for a moment that the landlord might only be checking if there's child pornography going on at his house, then I guess it would be ok. Also he pinky sweared not to share those images with anyone else. Now imagine the landlord is not a person but instead a fluffy cloud...
Now imagine it's not a rental but a house you bought and the builder installed the surveillance and you have no ability to remove them.
>and you have no ability to remove them
I'm having trouble imaging why you wouldn't be able to. Worst case scenario you need to head to home depot and get a ladder/drill or whatever, but that's about it.
Ignoring this author for breaking the house rules and thinking he is in the right. The reality is Airbnb's are slowly being regulated away due to both the poor behavior of guests and bad hosts that have allowed guests to remain unchecked. All it takes is one bad stay for your reputation with your neighbors to be ruined. I am on good terms with mine, but realize that, if I hosted a stay that brought too many guests or…
Part of the appeal of staying in an AirBnB is to have more flexibility and independence than staying in hotel. But as hosts become more surveillant, at a certain point the roles are reversed and hotels once again become the better place for enhanced privacy and autonomy.
It's a sad reality. I agree with you though. As an Airbnb host though, it really does take one bad guest to change the dynamics of hosting.
I did this and the landlord contacted me saying the internet needed to stay on because he had a front doorbell camera. I’m not sure what Airbnb’s policy is here so I plugged it back in.
Small amount of googling: https://julianoliver.com/output/log_2015-12-18_14-39 Next time I'm in an airbnb I'm definitely nmap'ing and trying this out. ;)
I wonder if there's a way to put them onto a loop instead of taking them down, so the owner doesn't suspect anything?
In a hotel room? Can you give me just about one example besides some creep who spied on his guests? I don't think that cameras in hotel rooms are in any way city dependent.
They could state as much if it is a genuine safety concern. Or not risk renting their home to complete strangers.
They stated "no pets". That's pretty black and white. Why did they need to say "No, really, no pets!" I am utterly infuriated by the attitude that breaking rules is okay. It's all the more galling that our society rewards some rule breakers. When I'm feeling particularly petulant I can sort of understand how one would feel an attraction toward authoritarianism and totalitarianism. From a realpolitik perspective renti…
Sometimes things just happen. Maybe a friend comes by to say hi and brings their little doggy, unaware of your host's policy. Now, if I had read "no pets, we are very allergic and it can cause serious health problems" I will tell me friend to get the hell off the porch immediately! If it's simply a standard "no pets, no parties, blah blah" it probably wouldn't even occur to me that a dog on the porch could possibly be an issue.
Things are not black and white and wishing for a world where they are black and white does no one any good. We're all better off accepting the complicated nuances of the world and acting accordingly.
Why would a hotel do that? Cameras in the lobby, the hallways and the elevators, sure. But in a hotel room? That's a great way to kill your business in no time.
Yes, that's my point in asking. AirBnb's have never been appealing to me, neither as a host nor as a guest, for just these kinds of reasons (i.e. lack of regulation like a regular hotel is under). I'm sure it's great for many, but I know of no towns or neighborhoods that express anything positive about the impact and effect AirBnbs have had on them -- _generally_, it's the opposite. https://www.alternativetravelers.c…
Same here. I don't do AirBnb for a number of reasons. Cameras being a key one.
I think if they do it, at least in Europe, the need clear signage that the room is under CCTV surveillance and I do think that this is a legal requirement in most European countries and even the extremely camera happy UK.
I think I'd bolt might fast if I find such signage in my room. If they put up cameras without indicating it that would be sure as hell illegal.
Now imagine it's not a rental but a house you bought and the builder installed the surveillance and you have no ability to remove them.
>and you have no ability to remove them I'm having trouble imaging why you wouldn't be able to. Worst case scenario you need to head to home depot and get a ladder/drill or whatever, but that's about it.
They're comparing this behavior to Apple's announcement about scanning iOS devices for child pornography.
If cell phone signal is good enough for decent internet coverage at your rental, just unplug the router so you don't have to worry about being watched all the time. One of the benefits of everything going cloud-based is that most of these stupid devices don't work without wifi/internet.
If a guest were to try this at my Airbnb, I have in my house rules that guests may not disable security devices and an onsite inspection will be performed if they do. And that's exactly the type of guest I would immediately terminate their stay.
This is exactly why Airbnb should be banned everywhere.
Ignoring this author for breaking the house rules and thinking he is in the right. The reality is Airbnb's are slowly being regulated away due to both the poor behavior of guests and bad hosts that have allowed guests to remain unchecked. All it takes is one bad stay for your reputation with your neighbors to be ruined. I am on good terms with mine, but realize that, if I hosted a stay that brought too many guests or…
Your paranoia about what bad guests can do doesn't excuse the landlord in the article for being a petty douche. Bringing a friend over who has a pet is not a reasonable thing to prohibit, nor is complaining about his daughter coming "a night early". These are the behaviors of a creepy asshole, not a human being.
It's not paranoia. Illegal parties and large gatherings are a huge problem with Airbnb's. Keep in mind - this article is from the guest perspective, we don't have the hosts perspective. But we have an author who admits to being busted for breaking the rules? Personally, yes, I'd "let it slide" and would not have even broughht it up with the guest. I agree it sounds petty on the host if the author is factual. But my comment is mainly to explain why I have exterior cameras - it's a sad reality that, to be a responsible host, and a good neighbor, I have to have them.
In a hotel room? Can you give me just about one example besides some creep who spied on his guests? I don't think that cameras in hotel rooms are in any way city dependent.
Here's an example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggYIsnUgUdU
I don't see the relevance of this video. It refers to illegally installed cameras.
I specifically excluded the creepy owner or manager who spies on guests.