How to Check a Hotel Room for Hidden Cameras

In 2019, South Korean police said spy cameras had been hidden in 42 rooms at 30 motels and livestreamed about 1,600 guests; reports described devices in TV boxes, sockets and hair-dryer holders. That is the extreme case, not the normal hotel check-in, but it shows why a calm room sweep is worth knowing.

To check a hotel room for hidden cameras, start in the most private spaces, inspect unfamiliar or oddly placed objects, use your phone flashlight close to possible lenses, turn the lights off to look for tiny indicators, and treat Wi-Fi or Bluetooth scans as supporting clues rather than proof.

The goal is not to take the room apart. A camera needs a view, and many devices need power or a connection. Focus on places where those needs overlap with privacy.

The short answer: check private spaces first

UCSB Police recommends beginning with a visual and physical inspection, especially in bathrooms, bedrooms and changing areas, because privacy expectations are highest there. Hidden cameras can be small and disguised as everyday items, so the best sweep is slow, close and object-focused.

Look first at anything pointed toward a shower, toilet, bed or dressing area. Then give extra attention to unclaimed, unknown or modified objects, especially plugged-in electronics. Even a disguised camera still needs an exposed lens to capture images or video, and research on hidden-camera detection notes that pinhole lenses may be only about 1–2 mm wide.

Step-by-step: check the room without panic

1. Start in the bathroom, bedroom and changing area. Stand at the doorway and scan for objects facing the most private spots. In the bathroom, look at counters, shelves, visible vents and anything aimed toward the shower or toilet. In the bedroom, check bedside tables, lamps, clocks, chargers, wall objects and devices with small dark openings.

2. Ask whether the object has a normal reason to face that direction. A TV facing the bed may be ordinary. A small hole in a charger aimed at the bed, or a decorative object angled toward a shower, deserves closer inspection. Screws, sensors and seams can look suspicious, so judge the whole context: placement, angle, power and whether the item looks modified.

3. Check the door and peephole. The Erin Andrews hotel privacy case is a reminder that the risk is not always a gadget left on a shelf. Her stalker altered hotel-room peepholes and recorded through the door; a jury awarded Andrews $55 million in 2016. If a peephole looks loose, covered, reversed or tampered with, step out and raise it with hotel staff or security.

4. Use the phone-flashlight lens test. Turn on your phone flashlight and hold it near your eye line. Sweep it across suspicious objects from close range and several angles. Camera lenses can reflect directed light back toward the viewer, a “cat-eye” effect described in hidden-camera research.

5. Move close and change angles. The same research explains that this reflection is visible only within a limited field of view and weakens with distance. Do not wave the flashlight from across the room. Move within arm’s length, sweep from left, right, above and below, and look for a crisp glint from inside a small opening.

6. Turn off the lights and look again. Close curtains if you can, turn off the room lights and let your eyes adjust. UCSB Police recommends this because tiny power or recording indicator lights can be harder to see in bright light. Scan from the bed, the bathroom doorway and the changing area, then inspect anything that catches your eye.

7. Try an infrared check only after testing your phone. Sony notes that infrared remote-control signals are invisible to the human eye but may be visible with a digital camera, camcorder or some smartphone cameras. Many current phones have IR filters, so test first with a known remote control: point it at your phone camera and press a button. If you see a flicker on-screen, that camera may help with an IR sweep.

8. Use Wi-Fi and Bluetooth checks as clues. A Wi-Fi scan can help only if you know what devices should be on the network and can spot something unfamiliar. NIST lists Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, LTE, ZigBee and Ethernet as examples of network interfaces for IoT devices, which is also the limitation: a guest-network scan cannot see a camera using another connection, local storage or no active connection.

What each checking method can and cannot prove

Method	Best for	What it may reveal	Main limit
Visual and physical inspection	First pass	Odd, modified or badly aimed objects	Very small lenses are easy to miss
Phone flashlight	Lens reflections	Exposed lenses in suspicious objects	Works best close up and from several angles
Lights-off check	Indicators	Tiny power or recording lights	Many cameras show no visible light
Infrared check	Night-vision LEDs	IR light if your phone can see it	Many phones filter IR
Wi-Fi scan	Networked devices	Unfamiliar devices on the same visible network	Misses other networks and offline devices
Bluetooth scan	Nearby broadcasting devices	Unfamiliar nearby signals	Names and signals can be vague
Detector apps or gadgets	Extra clues	Possible RF, lens or metal cues	Broad claims are often unreliable

USENIX researchers found a mismatch between detector marketing and reality. In their study, many physical detectors made broad claims, often using RF detection, magnetometers or IR lens detection. When they tested one physical detector and 11 detector apps, readings were often practically indistinguishable whether or not a covert device was present.

RF detection also has a basic problem: hotels and apartment buildings are full of radio signals. It can only indicate a spy device when that device is transmitting wirelessly, and other signals can confuse the result.

If you use StaySweep, treat it as one layer in the process, not as proof that a room is clear. The safest approach is still a combined sweep: private areas, line of sight, power, lens reflection and reporting if something appears wrong.

Know the rules for rentals, hotels and ships

Camera policies change, so check the current page for your booking platform before relying on it in a dispute.

Airbnb’s current policy says hosts may not have security cameras or recording devices that monitor indoor spaces in homes, even if the devices are turned off. Airbnb also says hidden security cameras are strictly prohibited, and it defines recording devices broadly, including devices that record or transmit video, images or audio. Its indoor-camera rule took effect on April 30, 2024.

Vrbo’s policy, published by Expedia Group, says surveillance devices such as cameras and audio recorders are not allowed inside a vacation rental and must not be placed outside to capture the inside, such as through a window. Vrbo also says hidden or disguised surveillance devices are never allowed, and guests who find a device that appears to violate policy should contact Vrbo immediately. If safety or wellbeing is a concern, Vrbo says to contact local law enforcement.

Hotels and cruise lines have their own procedures. In 2024, AP reported that a Royal Caribbean cabin attendant was accused of hiding cameras in passenger-cabin bathrooms after a guest found a camera affixed under a sink counter. On a ship, report to ship security and preserve evidence if safe; on land, use local authorities and the property’s management chain.

If you find a suspected hidden camera

First, get to a safe place. Leave the room if you feel unsafe, and do not confront a host, staff member or stranger while you are alone in the space.

If it is safe, photograph or video the device before touching it. Capture the object in place, a wider shot showing what it faces, and identifying details such as the room, listing or device position. UCSB Police recommends photographing the camera first when safe so you can show local authorities.

Then report it. Cameras in private places such as bedrooms, bathrooms and changing rooms are likely an invasion of privacy and often illegal; UCSB Police recommends filing a police report. In the United States, laws vary by state and situation, and 18 U.S.C. § 1801 applies in U.S. special maritime and territorial jurisdiction to certain nonconsensual images of a person’s private area where there is a reasonable expectation of privacy. Treat that as context, not legal advice.

Use the booking platform’s safety channel as well. Airbnb and Vrbo publish camera policies, but rules can change. Vrbo says guests may be eligible for a refund if a host’s surveillance-policy violation affects the stay.

Do not ignore the emotional side. UCSB Police notes that discovering a hidden camera can be distressing or traumatic. Contact a trusted person, victim-support service or local professional if you need support.

Mistakes to avoid

Do not search every surface in a panic. Focus on private spaces, objects with a view, unfamiliar items and powered electronics.

Do not rely on one app, gadget or detector. Research shows broad detector claims can be weak, and each method has blind spots.

Do not treat a clean Wi-Fi scan as proof. A camera may use a different network interface, record locally or stay offline during your scan.

Do not skip door hardware. The Andrews case shows that altered hotel fixtures can be part of a privacy violation.

Do not confront someone alone if you feel unsafe. Leave, document if safe, and report from a safer place.

Your hotel-room hidden-camera checklist

1. Check the bathroom, bedroom and changing area first.
2. Look for unfamiliar, modified or oddly aimed objects.
3. Pay extra attention to plugged-in electronics.
4. Sweep suspicious objects with a phone flashlight from close range and several angles.
5. Turn off the lights and look for tiny indicators.
6. Test your phone before relying on an infrared check.
7. Use Wi-Fi and Bluetooth scans as clues, not proof.
8. If you find something, leave if unsafe, photograph it if safe, and report it to local authorities and the booking platform.