It turns out no-one is safe when it comes to privacy. A video of visitors at Dutch sauna SpaWell in Drenthe was found on porn site Xhamster. The video had footage of nude women visitors getting undressed and taking showers. Smile, cause Big brother is watching!
The Dutch Sauna’s name was clearly visible in the video and the owner seems to agree that that is indeed their sauna. Normally customers are not allowed to take their smart phones nor cameras in. Yet, it looks like the footage was recorded by a visitor who hid the camera in a bag. It is unclear how the bag made it to the dressing rooms.
Is ‘Live from Dutch Sauna’ the next thing in porn?
It turns out, this is not the only incident. Couple of weeks ago, hackers managed to breach sauna Oase’s (located in Nederasselt) security system and put images of the Dutch woman’s handball team online. There was also a live video featuring mainly women and girls at the same sauna without their consent even though they were all recognizable in the footage. The interesting part? They are all still very much available online.
It is illegal to film in changing rooms since 2001 and this also applies to sports clubs and saunas.
What comes next?
After all the recent incidents and security breaches. Dutch privacy watchdog De Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens decided to start a research regarding the camera use in these establishments. According to the owners, there is a good reason for recording these areas: security and to protect their guests.
Obviously, when it comes to privacy of the visitors, it is not that simple. “If during the checks it turns out that there are indeed cameras hanging in saunas, then there is a serious breach of privacy. Companies can receive a warning or a penalty payment in the event of a violation. Moreover, if these kinds of images fall into the wrong hands, that’s terrible.” told De Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens spokesperson during their speech with RTL News.
Looks like this situation won’t be solved any time soon. What do you think? Is it possible to justify surveillance in dressing rooms?
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