Subscriber Discussion

Club Shows Surveillance Video To Wife, Wife Claims Husband Cheating

UI
Undisclosed Integrator #1
Aug 05, 2017

 

Customer calls asking for playback protections. 

What happened Mr. Customer?

Wife came to club and convinced employee to release photos of what appeared to be husband & husbands vehicle leaving with other women. 

How did they do that? She took pictures of the screen while it was played back.

Gotcha we can fix that; somewhat.

Reasoning: Customer is being sued by husband for slander as while the vehicle was close in identity the faces were to blurred for positive I'D and it was later found after further review it was not the correct vehicle. 

Fortunately we were not the installing dealer. Do they have a case? Who is responsible for release, individual or company? Could the installing dealer ever be held responsible, assuming it wasn't specifically spelled out to prohibit playback.

While the customer has signs stating video surveillance in use, does it specifically need to say something about how it can be released? 

There is very little info in law for the public release of video without the intention of profit, but slander apparently can be in the form of anything.

As more and more cameras are being used for everyday business purposes, beside the obvious better resolutions, increased lighting, more cameras, etc., etc., can playback permission be giving but photograph copying be protected by some sort of specialized monitor or permanently attached screen filter, does someone make one? 

Obviously anyone with playback permissions needs to be educated on the implications that playing video back can have. As well as the importance that each user have their own ID and a system capable of auditing when and who ran such query. 

(3)
(1)
JH
John Honovich
Aug 05, 2017
IPVM

#1, thanks, this is a very interesting example. Note: I changed the title, I hope that makes it a little clearer to the core issue involved.

Wife came to club and convinced employee to release photos of what appeared to be husband & husbands vehicle leaving with other women. 

How did they do that? She took pictures of the screen while it was played back.

To me, the mistake is right there - the employee who showed the video to the wife puts the club in the middle of a very heated situation. There should be a policy and the policy should be enforced by the club of when to show video to non-employees - either a warrant or a police request, etc.

Could the installing dealer ever be held responsible, assuming it wasn't specifically spelled out to prohibit playback.

They might be able to try to blame the installer but the description indicates this had nothing to do with the dealer but the questionable choice of the employee.

Agree/disagree?

(11)
(1)
JH
John Honovich
Aug 05, 2017
IPVM

Note, related to the point about taking photos of a surveillance monitor playing video, see: The Most Dangerous (and Easiest) Way To Export Surveillance Video

(1)
UM
Undisclosed Manufacturer #2
Aug 06, 2017

Does the installer have the responsibility of instructing/explaining to the customer the sensitivity or recorded versus live images? Perhaps set up their password system for them?  Perhaps, in this new age of extreme litigation, integrators need very definitive statements of work, including phrases limiting responsibility for the actions of the owner. 

When you buy a new car, the sales rep makes you get in the car, try the controls, point out features and functions. Some of that process may be based on limiting the dealership's liability.  It would probably be very difficult to sue an auto dealership for the bad driving habits of a customer.

(1)
MH
Michael Hough
Aug 10, 2017

If the installing company did not provide this footage to the wife and it was done by the club and or its employees, then they are the only ones involved in this situation.  Our customers are informed to come up with their own procedures for the handling of stored video and who has permission to even review/playback that video.   

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(2)
U
Undisclosed #3
Aug 10, 2017
IPVMU Certified

How can the video be slander since it does not say who is depicted?

If the employee told the wife who (they thought) was in the video, that statement would be the slander.  

Just the same as if she wasn't shown the video, but the employee was claiming he saw the husband in the footage.

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