- There is a dispute over surveillance cameras
- Woman says it looks into her house
- READ MORE: CCTV captures abuse
A bitter dispute has broken out between neighbors over a surveillance camera which one resident claims is infringing on his privacy.
Mollie, who lives with her mother in the southeast Melbourne suburb of Carrum Downs, believes the security camera set up by her neighbor can see everything that happens in the bathroom and bedrooms of her home.
She approached her male neighbor and asked him to put the camera on the side of his house, but despite initially promising that he would “take care of it”, he now refuses to do so.
“It’s all very frustrating.” [We believe] “He can see everything we do in these rooms,” Mollie told Yahoo News.
A Melbourne tenant is concerned that a neighbor’s security camera is looking directly into her home
“We both feel really intimidated by him. We can’t use one side of the house without feeling uncomfortable. “We have to keep the blinds down during the day so the camera can’t see us.”
Mollie asked the neighbor to lower the camera so that it was below the fence line.
However, he ultimately refused, saying it was his right to hold up the camera.
Police suggested Mollie get a personal security intervention order (PSIO) from a court to protect her privacy, but failed to convince the judge.
“I also spoke to the local council and they said it was a police matter,” she said.
“I spoke to legal aid and they said I would have to work with a private lawyer, which I can’t afford.”
According to Mollies, her neighbor also installed floodlights that shine into her home.
The surveillance camera visible above the fence is highlighted here with a red circle
Even though she asks the neighbor to lower the camera below the fence line, it stays put
Tenant advocate and qualified solicitor Jordan van den Berg said there were data protection laws that Mollie might be able to appeal.
He suggested she contact the Victorian Ombudsman if private lawyers were beyond her means.
Mollie also posted her dilemma on the Don’t Rent Me Facebook group and asked for helpful suggestions.
Some suggested she might need curtains or heavier blinds to provide more privacy.