Hiding Spy Cameras – in an Office
Introduction
Hiding a spy camera in plain sight is an art, but one you can quickly master with some ingenuity and creativity. Generally speaking, you want to hide the camera in something that’s commonly found in an office, but doesn’t draw much attention. In short, you want to hide the camera that can sit in plain view of everyone without someone taking a closer look.
An office is one of the easiest places to hide a spy camera, because the occupants of the office are only somewhat familiar with the contents of the office (compared to their own home). e.g. If you have a new clock or other desk item, as long as it’s not unusual, the individuals in the office are not likely to notice.
Hiding a spy camera on your desk
Since you have pretty much complete control of your desk, you have considerable freedom to hide a camera without anyone noticing. Typically you’ll have smaller items on your desk, such as picture frames, a clock, a desk tidy, a teddy bear, etc. Since most covert spy cameras are tiny, you’ve already got a massive choice of objects you can use to hide your camera.
- Desk Clocks
- Thanks to the digits and markings on the face of the clock, a clock can easily conceal the camera lens. An intricate design on the clock casing can also hide the pinhole lens.
- Teddy Bears
- A camera can be hidden in a teddy bear with the camera lens in the nose or eyes of the bear (as they are typically black). Although a teddy bear would be alien in a male-dominated environment, a teddy bear would be acceptable in a mixed office. Teddies are also very easy to position if you want to change what the camera can see.
- Desk Tidies
- A desk tidy can come in pretty much any shape or form you can imagine, but you’ll want a darker desk tidy to conceal the camera lens. Do bear in mind that someone might want to borrow a pen or pencil, so the camera needs to be hidden from superficial inspection.
- Box of Tissues
- A box of tissues has plenty of space inside the box, so you can easily hide a spy camera inside one. If you go for a well-made tissue box holder (rather than just a cardboard box of tissues from the supermarket, then you’ll have more control over how you hide the camera. Again, be aware that someone might want a tissue or two, so the camera has got to be out of sight.
- Picture Frames
- Hiding a camera in a picture frame is very tough, as typically frames are very thin. Although you do get plenty of flexibility with positioning a spy camera hidden in a picture frame, simply as most people tend to angle picture frames in some way.
Hiding a spy camera on someone else’s desk
When you’re trying to hide a camera on someone else’s desk, it’s considerably more difficult. That person is likely to be very familiar with their desk, and much more likely to take a closer look at a strange object on their desk. So the risk of having your camera being discovered is exceptionally high.
Therefore our recommendation is not to hide a spy camera on their desk, and hide the camera somewhere else in the office. We’ll cover some of those places now.
Hiding a spy camera in a board room
A board room (or meeting room, or conference room) are usually pretty devoid of objects, which will change your tactics for installing a spy camera. In a conference room, you’ll usually have a table, chairs, a projector, a projection screen, some form of communications equipment, a selection of refreshments and maybe some filing cabinets. None of these objects provide any suitable hiding places, so we need to be creative.
- Wall-mounted Clocks
- We’ve already mentioned that clocks are great for hiding a spy camera. A wall-mounted clock can be easily positioned to have a view of the whole room. The advantage of being wall-mounted also means that you could hide the camera and power wiring in the wall, which is ideal for longer-term observations.
- Pictures and Art
- Just like a wall-mounted clock, you can hide a camera behind a painting. However, just in case the picture is inspected, you want to ensure that the camera is not easily visible. A picture with plenty of textures e.g. an oil painting or collage would make hiding a camera easier.
- Two-Way Mirrors
- This one is a bit of spy classic, but still very effective. If you have any mirrors in the room, e.g. on the wall, mosaics, or ceiling panels, then you already have a natural place to hide a camera.
- Smoke Detectors and Alarms
- In the UK, detectors and alarms are required by law in all commercial buildings. By their very design, they feature holes and darkly-coloured elements that will make it easier to hide a camera. However, be aware that detectors and alarms will get serviced, so you’ll want to insure your detector passes an inspection my alarm service engineers.
More suggestions for hiding a camera in an office
In addition to hiding a camera in more permanent fixtures within the office, there are also some great hiding places among temporary furniture.
- Within Telephone Equipment
- Since telephones are typically placed on desktops, they are ideally suited to getting a good view of the room, as are most desk-based spy cameras. However, since the telephone is likely to be looked at frequently (if it’s not your phone), then you need to ensure the camera is exceptionally well hidden to avoid suspicion.
- Filing Cabinets
- Since filing cabinets are so large, and usually in a practical location within the office, they lend themselves to concealing a camera. As long as you lock the drawer that’s hiding the camera, nobody is going to discover it. If you have a metal filing cabinet, be aware that the metal is likely to shield a transmitting signal, so use a hard-wired or DVR solution.
- Spy Pens
- Hiding a spy camera in a pen means that you can put the camera anywhere you want in order to capture evidence. So if you’re in a meeting room, or you’re in the office, or even at a client’s office, you can record video with ease. Spy pens are typically recording rather than transmitting spy cameras, meaning they tend to have good battery life, but you’ll need to connect them to a computer to get the video footage.
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Bad places to hide a spy camera in an office
- Within Desk Legs
- The height of the table means that you’re not likely to capture anything useful, as it’s set too low. Additionally, if you have anyone wearing skirts in the office, and the camera gets found, you could find yourself being sued or prosecuted for voyeurism.
- Computer Mouse
- Hands are one of the most sensitive part of the human body, so computer users will easily detect any anomaly, such as spy camera holes. Additionally, if the computer mouse is in use, there’s a high chance that the lens will be pointing the wrong way, or be covered up.
- Photocopiers
- The location of a photocopier will often be in a great location to spy on the office. However, since photocopiers are usually serviced by external contractors, the risk of discovery is far too high.
- Within Plants and Plant Pots
- The camera is very likely to get wet if placed in a plant pot, and spy cameras are very sensitive to moisture. Even if a plant is fake, there’s still a chance that someone will empty their cup of water (or something else!) into the plant pot.
Finding Hidden Cameras
Badly hidden spy cameras are usually given away by a tell-tale black lens. If the camera is the pinhole type, the lens is about 2mm in diameter. If the camera is a wide-angle type, then the lens is around 15mm in diameter. Look out for excessive black patterns or holes on office items (on all of the places mentioned above).
You can also use a spy camera detector, which can help you find transmitting spy cameras. However, don’t rely just on a detector gadget to find spy cameras. An attention to detail usually yields the best results.
Legal Considerations
Observing employees at work is a bit of a minefield in terms of legalities, so do seek help from a legal specialist or a Human Resources (HR) consultant. If your spy camera is only being used for security purposes outside of office hours, then you might find you have fewer legal issues to navigate.