Neighbours CCTV recording audio from our back garden

There_Goes_The_Stingray

Davesnave said:

It seems to me that if the neighbour really wanted to record the OP, they would be much better buying a device that allowed close targeting in a narrow range and the capability to be virtually invisible, rather than sticking a general purpose device where all and sundry might see it.

Years ago, I made recordings of my neighbour's dogs while he was out in order to replay them to him when he arrived home. I felt he was unfortunate to miss all the delightful noises they made. However, virtually every recording was ruined by the resident robin, which would turn up as soon as I'd left the recorder and compete with the dogs. Whoever suggested the bird song recordings was definitely onto something!

Maybe, but the camera is specifically designed to run 24 hours a day, and triggers on both motion and sound. Perhaps the sound isn't particularly great, but considering it's within 4 foot of my private space I would imagine he could hear everything.

There_Goes_The_Stingray

SharkMoney said:

Let’s say you win a court battle and he is banned from owning cctv equipment. He will just open his window and listen to you if he’s that bothered, or leave a mobile phone outside on record. You can’t win this. 

He sure could. But, having a camera installed within touching distance of your own private space that is specifically designed to trigger on both motion and sound, with alerts going straight to his phone whether he is home or on holiday in Barbados, is a little bit more concerning.

davidmcn

There_Goes_The_Stingray said:

SharkMoney said:

Let’s say you win a court battle and he is banned from owning cctv equipment. He will just open his window and listen to you if he’s that bothered, or leave a mobile phone outside on record. You can’t win this. 

having a camera installed within touching distance of your own private space that is specifically designed to trigger on both motion and sound, with alerts going straight to his phone whether he is home or on holiday in Barbados, is a little bit more concerning.

But it appears to be merely your conjecture that he's monitoring you.

It would be like me trying to get an injunction to stop my neighbour listening to me with his glass up against the party wall, with no evidence that he's even doing it.

zagubov

lincroft1710 said:

You could start conversations about keeping goats or pigs in your back garden and how big the pen or sty should be.

Or have a pre-scripted conversation where you leave a gap where every 4th or 5th word should be, he may think his equipment is faulty

Play some recordings of Stanley Unwin talking and you'll soon find your neighbour getting confused and frustrated.

NinjaTune

I'm fairly base (and spiteful) so I'd loudly declare a swear word, repeatedly, every time I went near the recording device.  Might even stand there for 5 minutes repeating it for full effect.
Oh, did I mention I'm petty too??

ps only do this if you are SURE it's your conversation they are trying to record (is there an interesting backstory?)

Davesnave

Aren't we all forgetting that thing that sits in the corner of the kitchen listening to everything we say?

I forgot, so mentioned the fantastic coincidence of  Event 201, where  Bill Gates organised an exercise last October to simulate a virus pandemic.

It's only a matter of time now before 

Retireby40

If you were talking about anything personal or incriminating I doubt your going to be talking about it in your garden. So are you really worried he hears your opinion about Coronation Street or having your hair done?

Theres probably much more to this story than we are being told.

bucksbloke

Not sure what brand of camera he has, but mine picks up the sound of the wind - I would not be able to hear a conversation unless someone was stood right underneath it. Sound does not set mine off, only movement. 

rtho782

I have CCTV, 11 cameras in total although only 3 are outside. 
It records 24-7 and does record audio. I look at it in a few scenarios:
1. Because neighbours ask me if I might have any footage of their car being broken into. Happened twice.
2. Because I find evidence a fox has been in the garden trying to get to the rabbits again and want to figure out where it got in/out so I can stop it happening again. Happened a few times but now rarely as they get stuck in the garden, and are terrified until they manage to get out, which fortunately means they ignore the rabbits.
3. Because I've lost the TV remote or whatever other item so I skip through seeing where it goes from when I last saw it.
4. Because I'm watching the driveway to see when a delivery turns up.
5. Because we're on holiday and want to check on the cats.

The cameras do cover public property (and can like, see the front door of the house opposite), and while I used to be registered with the ICO as a data controller for this purpose, they emailed me a while back saying domestic CCTV didn't need to be registered anymore.

I am able to turn off the audio, but I find it useful on the rare occasions I look at it. I have absolutely no interest in trying to listen to my neighbours conversations, and I imagine neither does your neighbour. you're just choosing to take offense at it.

Domestic CCTV is perfectly legal.

Davesnave

rtho782 said:
I am able to turn off the audio, but I find it useful on the rare occasions I look at it. I have absolutely no interest in trying to listen to my neighbours conversations, and I imagine neither does your neighbour. you're just choosing to take offense at it.

This is surely a matter of individual positioning, so what you're doing is irrelevant if you have installed the equipment with reasonable thought to your neighbours' privacy and feelings.