Recently, a well-known anti-hidden camera blogger raised the alarm, revealing that a guesthouse hotel in Anhui Province had multiple rooms equipped with hidden cameras aimed at the beds, where live streams were being broadcast, sparking renewed attention on the issue of illegal voyeurism in the online community.
On April 18th, the anti-hidden camera blogger known as “Chasing Mice” used his real identity to report on social media platforms that a guesthouse hotel named “Jingyuxuan Xiaoshe” near Wenzhong Road in Yaohai District, Hefei City, Anhui, had hidden cameras in multiple rooms directed towards the beds and live-streaming the activities. The blogger mentioned that due to the recent ongoing exams, many students were staying in the guesthouse, and he had found potential privacy breaches of students on illegal websites.
By the evening of April 18th, the blogger claimed that a large number of victims were being live-streamed at the hotel (guesthouse), including a room where four or five university students were rehearsing, raising concerns about potential privacy violations such as undressing being broadcasted.
Despite reporting to the police at noon, the hidden cameras were still operational, and victims were being live-streamed. The guesthouse is located in close proximity to several universities in Hefei, making it a popular choice among students. The blogger mentioned that he was unclear about the exact number of victims but was certain that the hidden cameras had been in operation for several days.
In the early hours of April 19th, the blogger posted again, stating, “The real-name report on student privacy being monitored at Hefei University City guesthouses has been suppressed, I am powerless to reverse the situation, my conscience remains, but withering, hoping that every Chinese citizen will be treated kindly.”
On April 19th, a reporter from Xiaoxiang Morning Post reached out to the blogger “Chasing Mice,” who revealed that the hidden cameras would continuously stream the actions of guests on a certain app and that the recorded videos of guests’ private lives would be uploaded to illegal websites after the live broadcast.
“Chasing Mice” mentioned that his followers provided crucial clues, such as mentions in the stream about where they were going to play nearby. By comparing related videos and business images from various hotel booking platforms, he narrowed down several hotels in the vicinity, ultimately pinpointing the “Jingyuxuan Xiaoshe” guesthouse on Wenzhong Road in Hefei. “My followers are very enthusiastic, they went door to door in hotel rooms to warn them that their privacy was compromised, and some followers even saw the police conducting inspections with equipment.”
Currently, several victims have contacted “Chasing Mice” and claimed to have reported the incident to the police.
In the afternoon of April 19th, a journalist from the media contacted the police station in Modian, who stated that on the 18th, the technical department had conducted an on-site investigation. Although the exact number of hidden cameras was undisclosed, the cameras in the rooms reported by guests had been removed. The guesthouse owner had also reported the situation to the authorities upon learning of it.
On April 20th, the Hefei police announced that Wu Moufei (male, 37 years old) and Hu Mou (male, 36 years old) had been criminally detained for installing hidden cameras in a guesthouse on Wenzhong Road in the Xinzhan High-tech Zone. The case is currently under further investigation.
This incident has once again ignited public outrage against the clandestine industry of illegal surveillance in China.
Netizens commented, “This is an entire industry! As a university student myself, whenever I go out, I usually book a room through platforms, then use the mobile infrared camera to check the room before daring to stay.” “This is an industry chain; if one room has it, it’s fine, but if many rooms have it, it indicates problems with the guesthouse owner, some guesthouses can earn more from live streaming than regular room charges.” “This incident highlights the serious threat of illegal voyeurism to the safety of accommodation near universities, prompting public concern on privacy protection.”
“One sentence that made me want to laugh was, ‘The cameras in the rooms of the guests who reported have been removed,’ does that mean cameras in rooms where guests didn’t report were not removed, or perhaps rooms without occupants could still have cameras without anyone reporting, and so they won’t be removed. The issue is, facing potential problems, why not thoroughly investigate them? Also, every time there’s a problem, it’s always ‘under investigation,’ ‘cannot disclose,’ ‘in the process of being handled.'”
“How long has illegal surveillance been going on? For so long, without stricter laws and regulations, who is protecting the victims? Who is protecting the criminals?” “The trend of voyeurism has persisted for so long, yet there is still no strong punishment or thorough investigation. What does this signify?”
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