Why are there cameras in changing rooms at some places?

Hey fellow Japan dwellers.

I’ve been to a few places in Japan where they have full on surveillance cameras aimed at the changing rooms. This came up again tonight as I noticed they were installed at the onsen I am staying at. When I went to return my locker key at the front desk, I glanced over and noticed there was a live camera feed on 3 monitors visible, and what looked like a section with multiple views of the changing rooms.

What are your thoughts on this?

I personally don’t care about myself.

by Iamnotasimulation

15 comments
  1. The capsule hotel I usually stay at when passing through Tokyo has cameras in its changeroom/locker area. Same setup you mentioned with the live monitors behind the front desk.

    It was explained to me that it was in case of theft, and that the locker area within camera view wasn’t actually meant for changing (there’s a section, out of camera range, next to the public bath for that).

  2. Whatever you may think or they may say, there’s always a high risk the videos are ending on a staff member’s computer or that the whole CCTV has been hacked and it could be anywhere.

  3. I just know footage is going on xvideos 😩 taboos about nudity or not, I don’t trust anyone here to not do weird things with the footage.

  4. yeah i’ve always noticed cameras in the megadonki women’s toilets in shibuya

  5. There’s a japanese saying… “Why watch porn when you can star in it.” Probably.

  6. There are sites on the deep web with thousands of security cam live streams. Non-zero chance that some of these are on there.

  7. Historically, onsen’s and public baths used to have a female overlooker who monitored for any thefts and incidents. They still do that, but the element of digitisation means you never know if the video is being stored somewhere.

  8. The cameras are aimed at the entrances of changing rooms, not inside them. It’s not about invading privacy, but rather ensuring safety and security for customers.

  9. If these were actually video cameras, then in terms of legality, it is actually legal to install such cameras and generally there is signage posted. They are installed as theft prevention, usually in response to repeated incidents of theft. There are also usually (always?) camera-free changing areas available (again, there should be signage indicating this) and the expectation is that you’ll be covering yourself with a towel while you’re walking around.

    Keep in mind that what people often think are cameras are flame detectors – which are just thermal imaging cameras to detect the heat of a flame, and often indistinguishable from regular security cameras. The flame detectors we use in one of our production facilities are work really do look like security cameras, while at another one they’re all bright red to indicate that they’re part of the fire control system.

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