Yes, you can sue for hidden cameras placed in a space where you reasonably expected privacy, and you can often sue more than one defendant. Most cases proceed as invasion of privacy claims against the person who installed the device, and frequently against a landlord, employer, or business that allowed it to happen. If the camera also captured audio, federal wiretap law guarantees a minimum recovery of $10,000 plus your attorney’s fees, even without proof of specific financial loss.
The Claim You Would Be Filing
The legal theory behind almost every hidden camera lawsuit is called intrusion upon seclusion, a form of invasion of privacy recognized in nearly every state. It applies when someone deliberately intrudes on your private affairs through physical entry, electronic surveillance, or similar means in a way a reasonable person would find highly offensive.
To win, you generally have to prove four things:
- You had a reasonable expectation of privacy in the location.
- The defendant intruded on that privacy without your permission.
- The intrusion would offend a reasonable person.
- The intrusion caused you real harm, such as anxiety, humiliation, or financial loss.
Hidden camera cases tend to be stronger than other privacy claims because the private nature of the space usually isn’t in dispute. A camera concealed in a bedroom or bathroom is almost impossible to defend. The reasonable expectation of privacy in those spaces is so obvious that defendants rarely bother contesting it, and the real fight usually centers on who placed the device and whether someone else should have prevented it.
Criminal charges are a separate track. Every state has some form of voyeurism, unlawful surveillance, or “peeping tom” statute, and a federal law, the Video Voyeurism Prevention Act, covers conduct on federal property.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1801 – Video Voyeurism A criminal case is brought by the government to punish the offender; your civil case is brought by you to recover money. Both can move forward at the same time, and filing a police report often helps a civil suit by identifying the installer, preserving forensic evidence, and generating records you can use later.
Who You Can Sue
The most direct target is the person who installed or operated the camera. Identifying that person is often the hardest part of the case, which is one reason to involve law enforcement early.
The installer is rarely the only possible defendant, though. Property owners and businesses can be liable under different theories:
- A landlord or property manager who knew or should have known about a camera in a tenant’s unit and failed to act can be sued for negligence. The same applies when a landlord’s employee or contractor placed the device.
- An employer can be responsible for cameras placed by an employee acting within the scope of the job, or for failing to prevent surveillance in spaces like restrooms and locker rooms where workers expect privacy.
- A hotel, short-term rental host, or other business that controls a space where customers expect privacy has a duty to keep that space free from surveillance. A hotel chain that fails to inspect rooms or ignores complaints about hidden cameras can face direct liability. Airbnb banned all indoor cameras from listings worldwide as of April 30, 2024, which strengthens claims against hosts who install them anyway.2Airbnb. An Update on Our Policy on Security Cameras
Naming a business or property owner alongside the individual matters as a practical question of collection. Individuals often can’t pay a judgment. A corporate defendant with insurance or real assets is much more likely to actually pay what you win.
What You Can Recover
A successful lawsuit can produce several categories of financial recovery, and the totals can be substantial. In one 2023 federal case, a jury awarded a nanny $2.78 million after her employers hid a camera in her bedroom, including $780,000 for emotional distress and $2 million in punitive damages.
Compensatory Damages
Compensatory damages reimburse you for the actual harm the invasion caused. Emotional distress and mental anguish are the most common categories in hidden camera cases, and courts allow recovery without requiring proof of a physical injury. Anxiety, humiliation, depression, and feelings of powerlessness are all legitimate. Beyond emotional harm, you can recover concrete costs like therapy expenses, relocation costs, and lost wages if you had to miss work.
Punitive Damages
Punitive damages go beyond compensation. They exist to punish egregious behavior and deter others from repeating it. Courts reserve them for cases involving malice, deliberate disregard for your rights, or especially shocking conduct. Secretly recording someone undressing or bathing tends to clear that bar, which is why punitive awards in hidden camera cases can dwarf the compensatory damages, as they did in the nanny case above.
Wiretap Act Statutory Damages if the Camera Recorded Audio
Many hidden cameras record audio along with video. When they do, the federal Wiretap Act applies because intercepting oral communications without consent violates 18 U.S.C. § 2511.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 2511 – Interception and Disclosure of Wire, Oral, or Electronic Communications Prohibited This is a significant benefit for a plaintiff. Under 18 U.S.C. § 2520, you can recover the greater of your actual damages or statutory damages of $100 per day of violation or $10,000, whichever is larger. The court can also award punitive damages and must award reasonable attorney’s fees and litigation costs.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 2520 – Recovery of Civil Damages Authorized
The attorney’s fees provision changes the economics of taking on a case. A lawyer may accept a claim even if the expected compensatory damages are modest, because the defendant will owe the legal bills. And if the camera recorded audio over a period of months, the $100-per-day calculation adds up quickly on its own.
How Long You Have To File
Every state imposes a statute of limitations on privacy lawsuits, and missing the deadline ends your case regardless of its strength. For invasion of privacy claims, these deadlines typically run one to three years, depending on the state. New York and Pennsylvania give you just one year.
The clock usually starts under the “discovery rule.” The filing deadline doesn’t begin when the camera was installed. It begins when you discovered the camera, or when a reasonable person in your situation would have. That rule exists because the whole point of a hidden camera is to avoid detection, and letting the wrongdoer escape liability simply because they concealed the device well would reward the misconduct.
Once you find a camera, the clock is running. Consult an attorney quickly. Identifying the responsible party and gathering evidence takes time, and some states allow very little of it.
What To Do Right After You Find a Camera
The steps you take in the first hours matter. Evidence disappears, memories fade, and small mistakes can create problems later.
- Don’t touch or move the device. Leave the camera where you found it. Moving it, unplugging it, or trying to access its memory card can compromise the evidence and make it harder to prove who placed it or what it recorded.
- Call the police and file a report. Law enforcement can collect the camera properly, maintain the chain of custody courts require, and open a criminal investigation that may identify the installer.
- Document the scene without disturbing it. Use your phone to photograph the camera’s location, how it was concealed, and the surrounding area. Capture the make and model if you can.
- Write down who had access. List every person who could have entered the space: landlords, maintenance workers, housekeeping staff, roommates, recent visitors. Do this while your memory is fresh.
- Start a harm journal. Record how the discovery affects you: sleep problems, anxiety, inability to feel safe at home, missed work. These entries become evidence of emotional distress.
- Keep every receipt. Therapy bills, moving costs, security equipment, time off work. These build the paper trail for compensatory damages.
- Call an attorney. A lawyer experienced in privacy litigation can guide evidence preservation, identify all potential defendants, and pick the theories that give you the strongest claim.
If you suspect additional cameras, a professional counter-surveillance sweep by a licensed investigator typically costs several hundred dollars and can find devices you would never spot on your own. That expense is usually recoverable as part of your damages if you win.
What Hiring a Lawyer Costs
Most attorneys who handle privacy invasion cases work on contingency, taking a percentage of your recovery rather than charging by the hour. The standard contingency fee runs between 33% and 40% of the final settlement or verdict, sometimes higher if the case goes to trial. If you lose, you typically owe nothing in attorney’s fees.
Court filing fees for a civil lawsuit generally run a few hundred dollars, with the exact amount varying by jurisdiction. Other costs include expert witnesses, counter-surveillance sweeps, and deposition expenses. When your case includes a Wiretap Act claim, the defendant pays your reasonable attorney’s fees if you win, which materially reduces your out-of-pocket risk.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 2520 – Recovery of Civil Damages Authorized