Weirdness in new flat I've just started renting

elsien

BonaDea said:

Yes, I would find that disturbing too.  It certainly is suspicious enough to warrant further investigation.  Spying on someone else in their home is illegal and I assume it's a criminal rather than civil offence.  Cover up the one in your bedroom but try not to handle it.  Then call the local police station tomorrow and explain the situation.  Don't call the letting agency first, if it is indeed a surveillance camera it may be that someone at the agency is implicated.  If it turns out not to be, you may feel slightly silly but don't worry about that.  Spying on young women like this really is a thing (of course I don't know that you are one!) and predatory behaviour thrives where it's always given the benefit of the doubt. 
https://www.spyequipmentuk.co.uk/spy-laws/#:~:text=What is illegal use of,covert cameras for illegal reasons.

Is that a serious suggestion? Because if it is, I’m pretty sure I already know how it will go. 

ThisIsWeird

Hi JustBee.

It would be highly unlikely that you are being surveilled. It's possible, of course, in which case it would be a very serious offence, but it's highly unlikely.

The buffoon who let themselves into your flat may have been informed that the flat was unoccupied, and was there to do a legitimate task. Note it down, day, time, name (if you have it), and how you reported this to the LL/agent. If this happens again, then you take action (tho' I'm uncertain as to what form this would take).

Meanwhile, buy yourself a small indoor camera, either overt or covert type - or both! Make sure it has an 'alert' feature - most do - so it'll inform you by phone app if it's been triggered, and position it where no-one can possibly walk past it without being seen - aimed at the inside of your door, for instance. Also it should have a fitted SD card to record on a loop, overwriting every week or so.

That wall thermostat - try turning it up and down until you hear a 'click' - does a light come on behind that pinhole? If yes, then remove the tape. If no, then cover it back up! Then ask a knowledgeable friend to remove the cover for a proper looksee at some point - often just one screw - in order to reassure you further.

Open up the camera app on your phone, and turn off the lights in each room at a time. Scan the room slowly and thoroughly, and the presence of invisible-to-the-naked-eye illuminated IR LEDs - which would be needed for nighttime camera viewing - should show itself by a very clear glow on your screen. Test this yourself by darkening your room, and pointing your TV remote control at your camera lens - you should see bright white pulses.

Do each room. Every nook and cranny. Covings, corners, light fittings, plugs, sockets, ceilings.

If you find nothing - which is what I expect - then please try and relax. If you phone the police with nothing to base your suspicions on, you will be wasting their time.

Do you have any friends, relatives, or work colleagues who could also check over your flat in the manner I suggested? Scan for IR light. Open up any appliance that looks dodgy, but without damaging them?

Herzlos

I suspect it's mostly paranoia here and there's more going on.

However, download an app called "Fing", which is a wifi/network analzyer, and that'll tell you what networks are running and what's connected to them. If there's any kind of wifi spying device it'll show up.

Most likely the hole in the thermostat is where the thermometer is and by covering it up you'll trick it into being warmer than it is.

I echo the suggestion of getting your own security camera, something like a blink or a ring is pretty cheap and will tell you if someone has entered your flat when you're out.

Herzlos

JustBee said:

It has nothing on it identifying what make it is and the heating is electric. They have their own thermostats on the radiators. Now I feel sick! Just found this...

https://www.eyetek.co.uk/product/room-thermostat-surveillance-camera/

This is the same but has a logo on !!!!!!!

It's got an 8 hour battery life and can only record 1 hour of footage, so it wouldn't make sense in this example. It sounds like more of a nanny camera.

Of course, the spy camera has a hole there to blend in with a regular thermostat which also has a hole in it, so it doesn't tell us anything.

OP could always pop the cover off to look for a battery or camera.

Grizebeck

On a related note schools go back soon

ian1246

Op, I ll be straight to the point - you sound unwell and I would really encourage you to seek help. Your clearly very on edge & anxious and I think the anxiety is causing you to jump at Shadows and see everything around in a suspicious light. Could you maybe have a chat to your doctor?  This isn't a criticism at all btw - mental health is something everyone goes through at various points in their lives and if this is something your struggling with, it's better to seek help sooner rather than later - especially as the NHS waiting list for things like counselling or cognitive behaviour therapy has a 6+month wait.

If you report it to your local police, it's likely they also will recognise it as mental health and (hopefully) put a vulnerable adult referral in - meaning the information will be shared with other agencies such as the NHS, social services etc... Do you have any professionals already involved in your life- such as a support worker, health care visitor or social worker? If so, maybe have a chat to then about your worries? Hope you get better soon. 

FreeBear

Herzlos said:

JustBee said:

It has nothing on it identifying what make it is and the heating is electric. They have their own thermostats on the radiators. Now I feel sick! Just found this...

https://www.eyetek.co.uk/product/room-thermostat-surveillance-camera/

This is the same but has a logo on !!!!!!!

OP could always pop the cover off to look for a battery or camera.

But do be aware that these things are likely to have exposed bits of metal that will be live - Poking around inside something with 240V floating around is inadvisable unless you have some idea of what you are doing.

BonaDea

elsien said:

BonaDea said:

Yes, I would find that disturbing too.  It certainly is suspicious enough to warrant further investigation.  Spying on someone else in their home is illegal and I assume it's a criminal rather than civil offence.  Cover up the one in your bedroom but try not to handle it.  Then call the local police station tomorrow and explain the situation.  Don't call the letting agency first, if it is indeed a surveillance camera it may be that someone at the agency is implicated.  If it turns out not to be, you may feel slightly silly but don't worry about that.  Spying on young women like this really is a thing (of course I don't know that you are one!) and predatory behaviour thrives where it's always given the benefit of the doubt. 
https://www.spyequipmentuk.co.uk/spy-laws/#:~:text=What is illegal use of,covert cameras for illegal reasons.

Is that a serious suggestion? Because if it is, I’m pretty sure I already know how it will go. 

Yes, it was a serious suggestion.  Informed by my own experience decades ago when I rented a room in shared accommodation and the young man occupying the room next to mine spied on me at nights from within a cupboard inside my own room.  (Corner cupboards in each room, which unbeknown to me were interconnecting but separated by a panel he'd worked out how to remove and replace.)  Discovered only when he had a dramatic mental health crisis one of these nights, emergency medical help had to be called, and he was carted off to hospital never to be seen again.  This kind of thing is probably not as rare as we'd all like to think.

bobster2

Looks like a normal Greenbrook thermostat...

https://www.gsmsupplies.co.uk/room-thermostat-greenbrook-th90c-c.html

JustBee

I don't have the heating on, it's not cold enough. There's a click when it's turned up but no red light appears in that dot at all. Probably I'd need to turn the heating on eh! I'm not likely to run to the police for anything. I like hard evidence so the installation of a camera is the way to go because a particular item I look at before I leave the flat everytime I leave because it's pretty absolutely could not move the way this had been moved without someone physically touching it.

I have OCD, I know how I leave my stuff and I've been taking photos everyday since just to add for some of my peace of mind.