Have you ever encountered the embarrassment of being "stared" at by a neighbor's camera in your hallway? When smart doorbells become the "door gods" of thousands of households, where should their "eyes" look? On 1/0, China's first administrative regulation to systematically regulate the management of public security video was officially implemented, and the "Regulations on the Management of Public Security Video Image Information System" comprehensively regulated the construction and use of public security video systems, and clearly delineated the installation scope, filing system and installation prohibition area of cameras in public places. Among them, it is the first time to delineate the "behavior red line" for the cameras, smart video door locks and other equipment installed at the door of the house. So, can you install a camera in front of your own home? How to install without violating the rules? What should I do if I already have it installed?

　　Why is "installing a camera at the door of your own house" written into the law?

In the eyes of many people, installing a camera in front of my house is a personal act, why is it written into the law? Let's first look at what is said in the regulations.

　　The regulations state that:The installation of image acquisition equipment and facilities in non-public places must not endanger public safety or infringe upon the lawful rights and interests of others, and must not illegally provide or publicly disseminate video and image information involving public safety, personal privacy, and personal information.

　　Liu Weijun, professor at the Investigation College of the Chinese People's Public Security University:According to the regulations, it is not illegal for citizens to install such image acquisition equipment in their own homes based on their own safety precautions. However, we should note that when we install cameras, it is not only a guarantee for myself, but also may affect the rights and interests of others. Therefore, if your image acquisition equipment will collect information in public places, then the use of information in public places must comply with the provisions of this regulation, and you cannot use it illegally, provide it to the outside world and disseminate it illegally.

　　Is it infringing to install a video doorbell to photograph a neighbor's private space?

If a camera captures a neighbor's private space, will it violate the neighbor's privacy? Do neighbors have the right to demand demolition? 27-year-old Xiaoli lives alone in a high-rise residential building in a community in Changsha. Because of the problem of garbage stacking, there were disputes with neighbors. Out of her own safety considerations, Xiaoli installed a smart video doorbell on her entrance door, but was sued by her neighbor in court soon after. Recently, the People's Court of Yuhua District, Changsha, Hunan Province, heard this neighborhood dispute caused by the installation of cameras in front of the house.

However, the problem lies in the shooting range of this video doorbell, the floor where the house is located is a two-ladder and three-household structure, Xiaoli is in the middle of the household, the recording range of the video doorbell is aimed at the entrance and exit of the public elevator shaft, and the movement or stay of people in front of the door will trigger automatic photography and video, and the recorded video, pictures and other content will be pushed to Xiaoli's mobile phone. Xiaoli did not ask for the consent of the neighbors concerned before installing the camera.

The location of the video doorbell covers the corridor where Mr. Liu's family must go out. Therefore, Mr. Liu believed that the video doorbell installed by Xiaoli had violated the privacy of his whereabouts and asked to remove it.

　　2024年底，刘先生将小丽起诉至法院，要求拆除可视门铃，并赔偿精神损失、误工损失共计8万元。

The controversy in this case focuses on the conflict between citizens' right to privacy and citizens' right to security.

The Changsha Yuhua District People's Court held at trial that the plaintiff's clues about the internal activities of the plaintiff's family, information on his whereabouts, and even his family's social interactions were all personal privacy and were protected by law in accordance with law. Although the defendant had the right to install a camera out of the need for "life security", the exercise of the right exceeded a reasonable scope and violated the privacy rights of other citizens.

In the end, the court ordered the defendant to remove the video doorbell installed in front of the entrance door and dismissed the plaintiff's other claims.

　　Zhang Songjie, President of the First Civil Trial Division of the Yuhua District People's Court of Changsha City, Hunan Province:The plaintiff faced the defendant's camera, and his daily itinerary, the time and date of his outing, the friends he saw, and his social activities had all been mastered by the defendant, which had exceeded the defendant's right to safety and security. In the case of spiritual solace, we take into account that the plaintiff has not provided evidence to prove the specific extent of his mental damage and the specific amount of losses arising therefrom, so we do not support this part.

　　What should I do if I have a camera installed in front of my house?

In real life, for friends who have installed cameras at their doorsteps, how to find a solution that is acceptable to both neighbors, let's look at the case heard by the Wuxi Court in Jiangsu.

Mr. Dai, who lives in a community in Wuxi, asked to remove the camera because his neighbor installed a camera in front of his door, believing that the camera violated their privacy, but the neighbor only moved the camera to a certain location. When the negotiations failed, Mr. Dai took his neighbor to court.

　　Judge Chen Ying of Jiangxi Court of Wuxi Xinwu District People's Court:The original camera was installed directly above the entrance door, where we now see that there are still three holes. The camera can be rotated at 360°, and this direction is the plaintiff's bedroom, and the camera must be able to capture the situation in the plaintiff's bedroom. At the same time, this direction is the plaintiff's kitchen, and after the camera is installed, it will definitely be able to capture the relevant activity information of the plaintiff's kitchen. Later, the defendant moved the camera directly above us to the right-hand side of the cantilever, and installed it in this place, but the camera can still rotate at 0° and can still capture the situation of the plaintiff's bedroom.

The court held that the information of the plaintiff Mr. and Mrs. Dai entering and leaving the house and their activities in the residence was highly related to personal and property safety and private living habits, and should be regarded as a personality right with a private nature and should be protected by law. Under the mediation of the court, the defendant took the initiative to rectify the situation and installed a baffle on the camera.

　　Judge Chen Ying of Jiangxi Court of Wuxi Xinwu District People's Court:The camera installed by the defendant was no longer able to capture information about the plaintiff's activities entering and leaving the house, and in the absence of the fact that the defendant had actually infringed the facts, we finally did not rule in favor of the plaintiff's claim and rejected the plaintiff's claim for the defendant to remove the camera.

　　How to install the camera at the door of the house to be legal and compliant?

It can be seen from the court's judgment that once the camera installed at the door of one's house "crosses the line", it may infringe on the privacy of others.

Individuals need to pay attention to the following three points when installing cameras at their doorstep.

　　Before installation, communicate in advance:It is best to ask for the consent of the neighbor or give a kind reminder to avoid misunderstandings and conflicts.

　　When installing, pay attention to the angle:To carefully choose the location of the camera and adjust the shooting angle, you can install a baffle around the camera to ensure that the shooting range only covers the necessary area at the door of your own home, avoid involving the interior of the neighbor's house, windows, passages and other private spaces for the neighbor's pass, and at the same time, try to turn off automatic tracking, recording and other functions.

　　After installation, strictly manage the data:The video image information captured and stored by the camera shall be kept strictly confidential to prevent information leakage, and shall not be illegally provided or publicly disseminated.

　　What should I do if my neighbors don't agree with me installing a camera in front of my house?

What if your neighbors, who are stakeholders in the common areas, don't agree with you installing cameras in front of your home?

The judge reminded the owner of the camera installation that it is necessary to keep a schematic diagram of the area covered by the camera and a record of the adjustment to prove that the privacy of others has been avoided during the installation.

　　Zhang Songjie, President of the First Civil Trial Division of the Yuhua District People's Court of Changsha City, Hunan Province:I fulfilled the relevant obligations when installing, how did I think about it when installing, how to adjust this angle, what are the functions, and then whether the scope of the video involves other people's public areas and travel information. Keep this evidence well, if there is a dispute, we can prove this, we have taken into account the protection of the privacy of our neighbors when we installed it, we have no infringement, we can prove it.

(CCTV reporter Zhang Sai)

Source: CCTV