While you’re trying on a party dress or checking out your bum in those skinny jeans, could someone else be watching you get undressed?
Police issued a warning about a hook that looks like any other clothing hook, something you’d expect in a changing room — but inside this hook lies a hidden camera.
Common places for hidden cameras are inside dressing rooms, hotel rooms and public restrooms. The mini cameras film from a tiny hole at the top of the plastic.
The “spy” hooks can be purchased for as little as $13 online and look like any other clothing hook. The sellers often describe the hidden camera as a home security or “nanny cam,” but last year, police in Florida found spy hooks in three public bathrooms across the state.
“Anyone who has a public restroom on their property needs to check them closely,” Monroe County Sheriff Rick Ramsay said at the time.
“If you find anything suspicious you think might contain a hidden camera, don’t touch it. Call us right away and we will respond.”
Some of the hooks feature 90-minutes of recording time, motion detection, a wide-angle lens and HD quality. Some also have slots for micro SD cards to store the video (and audio) footage.
One reviewer on Amazon said she purchased a hook as a gift for her younger brother who loves spy games.
Another said the hook was “JUST WHAT I NEEDED to keep an eye on my pet sitter who comes over to look after my dogs. I was suspecting that the sitter was charging me for a 45 minute visit but only staying for about 15. I WAS RIGHT and have the PROOF of it being true as I have it on cam! Needless to say, I am no longer using that pet sitter!”
Depending on the model, some reviewers complained about the device’s low resolution, blurry images and just flat-out not working.
One potential purchaser asked Amazon, “Exactly why is it that anyone would make a spy camera for a dressing room and more importantly, why would anyone buy it?”
One of the answers explained “it’s not just for the dressing room.”
As Ramsay warned, “Keep in mind, though, that these are very small cameras that can be mounted in many locations and hidden in many seemingly everyday items.”
