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Welcome to Rosson Reports Live. I am Jeff Rosson. Thank you so much for being here. Boy, do we have a crazy show for you today. Hidden cameras inside of Airbnbs and verbos, short-term rentals, even hotels. I have been investigating this for years, and it is absolutely shocking where they are hiding these cameras, what they are doing, where the signals are going. It's it's also a major issue. More than 30,000 complaints into Airbnb about just this. Guests who are like, "I'm finding a hidden camera in here recording me during intimate moments, bathrooms, bedrooms."
By the way, there was a survey done in 2025. I was just looking at this and I couldn't believe it. I had to check it twice. 47% of Americans reported discovering a camera in their short-term rental. That's a 22% spike since 2023. So, 47% nearly half of the people who are in short-term rentals say, "We found a hidden camera in there." And they're getting smaller and smaller. They're getting harder and harder to spot. How small are they? I did an experiment which we're going to show you. I went to a family and I said, "Hey, clear out of your house for a few hours." And we hid 14 hidden cameras all over their house. And then we brought them back in and said, "Hey, look around. Let us know if you see anything out of place." And remember, this is their own house. So, they know what's out of place and what's not out of place. Okay? At an Airbnb or a VBO or a hotel, you wouldn't know that. And you're going to see the results of what happened. It is absolutely shocking.
So, do you think you could find the hidden camera in your rental in your hotel room? Don't be so sure. But don't worry, we are going to show you how to do it. I'm going to show you literally on your phone how to do it for free. Little stuff you can do with your camera app. And there are little little kind of ways that you can tell if there's a hidden camera if you look around and you shut off the lights. I'm going to show you that. But there are also devices that you can get on Amazon that are pretty inexpensive, pretty affordable that you should bring to every single time that you go on vacation. I have one. I bought one after I invest started investigating this. I literally bought one of those. Every single time we go to an Airbnb with my family, I literally walk around and I take these detectors and these lens detectors and these lens spotters and I do it. I'm going to show you how to do it, too. And I'm going to show you which ones to get. We have a private investigator coming on to help you with that as well. So, we got a lot to get to and we're going to keep your family safe because this can get you're in the bathroom, you're in the shower, you're doing intimate things in the bedroom. You don't want that being recorded anywhere. Anywhere. There's also an app you can download. We'll get to that, too.
So, hit like and subscribe on this video right now. Doesn't cost you anything. Just hit that thumbs up. Really helps. And when you hit subscribe, hit the little bell notification so you're notified about our content. It really, really helps the algorithm. Spreads the word. Also, join the chat. I see a lot of you already weighing in. Uh, we read everything. Let us know where you're watching from. Let us know if you've had any of these issues. Have you ever spotted a hidden camera inside of your rental? We want to hear about it.
So, where are the hosts hiding them? Um, what does it look like on hidden camera when it's hidden in a smoke detector? You are about to see some real life cases uh from when I worked for the Today Show a while back and I started investigating this and what I found is absolutely shocking and where they are hiding these cameras is absolutely shocking. We're about to give you a crash course. Uh, roll clip one.
This is creepy as hell. This husband and wife just rented an Airbnb in Florida. And they look stunned for good reason. They just noticed that smoke detector hanging in the bedroom is actually a hidden camera aimed directly at their bed. The Airbnb homeowner, this guy accused of recording their every move, now charged with video voyerism. It happened in Las Vegas, too. Another man accused of planting six hidden cameras in bedrooms and a bathroom, then renting the house to unsuspecting Airbnb customers. He's pled not guilty. But these spy cams are so accessible anyone can buy them. Scott Black is the owner of Bethlehem Spy Shop in Pennsylvania. >> Okay, this is an everyday household alarm clock and we have a camera hidden in this. >> I don't see it at all. Is there a lens in there? >> That's the whole idea. You're not supposed to see it. Yes, there is a lens in there >> and it fits right into any home. >> Completely invisible. >> So does this. >> Yes, invisible to the naked eye. This is a DC adapter that everybody has in their office. >> And where's the lens? >> The lens is there. It is right there. Right there in >> You can't even see it, I bet. And we have this. This is a smoke detector. And this is what we saw used in that Airbnb. >> Exactly. Right. And that has a hidden camera once again in it. I can't even see it. And I'm looking for it. >> Isn't that insane?
So, what are these creeps thinking when they plant the cameras? And what are they actually looking for? There was actually an Airbnb host uh recently busted by the cops who actually opened up. He spilled the beans and admitted to doing it and says why he did it and what he was able to see. And worse yet, in this clip I'm about to show you from a CNN investigation. They did a great job on this. What Airbnb does when you complain about it. This is really going to make you mad because we assume Airbnb is vetting the hosts on the platform. Yes, of course they can't control every single thing, but they should be taking some level of responsibility when they find out when a if you stay in an Airbnb and you say to them, "I found this hidden camera right in this, you know, in this coffee mug. I found the hidden camera. Here's the evidence. I found the wiring." And you complain to them they need to have your back, but it turns out they may not. Roll clip two.
Across North America, police have seized thousands of images from hidden cameras at Airbnb rentals, including people's most intimate moments. What happened when you realized that there was a camera in that charger? >> It's so eerie and so creepy. Then your brain starts thinking, "What did [music] they see? What were what what happened while we were in that room?" In a small town in Maine, a couple found a hidden camera at their Airbnb. Listen to what the host told police. >> So, they they had sex. >> Yeah. >> And you recorded that? >> I took some screenshots. >> The host admits he set up a camera hidden in this clock next to the bed to record unsuspecting guests. >> So, there there are there's stuff of a couple couple of couples playing around or getting changed. So, uh >> Okay. So, there's there's pictures of people that are in intimate situations. >> Yes. >> Okay. >> It's more than just a few reported cases. An Airbnb knows it's a problem. In this deposition reviewed by CNN, an Airbnb rep said 35,000 customer support tickets about security cameras or recording devices had been documented over a decade. Airbnb told CNN a single complaint can involve multiple tickets. And a CNN investigation found Airbnb not only fails to protect its guests, it works to keep complaints out of the courts and away from the public. Why don't we know about this? They are trying to keep it secretive. And if everyone knew what was happening, they would not be using their website. >> Airbnb wants to wash their hands clean when they have a host who does something illegal or suspicious. They want to say, "We are simply a website. We are not responsible for this host. We are not responsible for this property." >> Florida attorneys Belus Plata and Shannon Shot say trying to sue Airbnb if something goes wrong is extremely difficult. It begins when you sign up on Airbnb's website and click agree to its terms of service. You're agreeing to assume all risk. The person going to rent the property agrees that if something happens while they're staying at this accommodation, they're actually prohibited from suing Airbnb. They must go a different route, which is a binding arbitration. It's a way to strongarm someone. >> Is this about controlling publicity? 100%. >> Absolutely. >> You see, this is the stuff that angers me because yes, Airbnb can't control what everybody does. There are a lot of creeps out there, but we expect the backing when we're using a platform. If you've ever used Airbnb, either as a host or as a guest, you know the fees that you got to pay. What are we paying for? Protect us.
And by the way, this is happening in hotels, too. This is not just short-term rentals. I want to show you this girl. And by the way, like if you look at her hands in the beginning of this video, she is shaking as she tells the story as she finds a camera. She was staying in a hotel. She's in the bathroom getting changed and she looks at the wall in the vent and she sees like a screw that's a little out of place. I don't know how she was able to notice it, but she did. And she digs deeper and look at what she finds. This is horrifying. >> The screw is literally out. >> That's Shaylee Smith moments after she found a hidden camera tucked in a vent of her hotel bathroom. It was really disgusting and disturbing. >> She was in town for her sister's volleyball tournament and discovered the camera after already staying overnight. >> I walked into the bathroom. Um I started to get undressed from like to put on my get out of my pajamas. Uh and it I would have not seen it if I wasn't facing the way I was facing. And I happened to look up uh and there was a little screw that did not belong there. Uh, and when I seen it, I was like, I can like that can't be what I think it is. >> The next thing she did was call her mom who called the police.
>> I'm looking at some of your comments and one of you just wrote, "Uh, yeah, nothing is private anymore." It does feel that way, doesn't it? But when we're in the bathroom, when we're in the bedroom, it damn well better be private. And there are some serious creeps out there hiding in plain sight who are doing this. And it's getting easier and easier with the technology. It used to be that they had to wire it like through the ceiling, through a wall and record somewhere. Now it is all Wi-Fi. But we are going to show you ways to detect cameras on the system. Remember, we're going to show you how to sweep your hotel room, how to sweep your Airbnb for hidden cameras. You know, as in the leadup to this show, I was asking all my friends, I was telling them what they were what I was doing, and they're like, "Gh, I would never fall for that. I would You can see a hidden camera." Um, no, you can't. And just to prove it, I did an extreme experiment. Again, back when I worked for the Today Show, an extreme experiment where I went to a family and I said, "Hey, give us the house for a few hours. We want to involve you in an experiment and we're going to do stuff to your house and then you're going to come back and let us know if anything's out of place." And we didn't do crazy wiring or anything like that. We just left some things in different places. A wall charger, uh, a water bottle that's out of place, a pen, just spread through the house. I hid 14 I mean I'm kind of a creep. Uh 14 hidden cameras all over their house to see if they could find them and they come back and remember we knew we weren't going to catch them doing anything bad because they knew I was there with a camera crew and we took all the camera but you'll see everything. But I wanted to see if they could spot these hidden cameras. Um this is an extreme example but it just goes to show you this is their own house. If you were at an Airbnb you would have no clue it's out of place. Roll clip for.
We set up an experiment at this house. We told the family we're doing a general story about home safety and security and asked them to step away and give us access to their house. They said yes. Then we went to work. We have hidden 14 hidden cameras all over their house. There's one right here, believe it or not. And here's another hidden camera right over here. This cell phone charger is actually a hidden camera. We have these all over and we're going to see if they can spot them. Come on in, guys. Welcome back to your own home. We set them loose. They're walking around. No clue our cameras are watching them. >> Move my pillows around. >> Do we have this one? >> It's not how I had them. >> We have eyes on the family in nearly every room. The kitchen, the living room, walking upstairs to the bedrooms. Scott and I watching it all from a coffee shop. >> You can watch it live. We're only 2 miles away. We might as well be 2,000 mi away. You can be anywhere in the world. As long as you have the internet connection, you can monitor it live. >> We even have cameras in the master bedroom. But look, they have no idea when they come back downstairs. I have a surprise. >> We've planted hidden cameras all over this house. In your bedroom, in your bedroom, >> here in the kitchen, in that room, in that room. There are hidden cameras everywhere. We did that quickly. We wouldn't even We were unsuspecting. >> You know this house like the back of your hand. And you didn't notice. Imagine what it's like when you go into an Airbnb and there are little things sitting out there >> that are actually cameras. >> Yeah, that's a little scary. >> We reveal all our cameras from the smoke detector. >> I totally didn't see that. >> To this pen. >> That is amazing. I'm kind of like speechless and that's very rare for me, but that's scary. >> Come on. >> But the biggest surprise upstairs in their bedroom. >> For a criminal, this is where the private moments happen. >> Right. Right. You didn't notice it, but we had a camera hidden inside this water bottle. >> It's inside the water bottle. >> It's inside the water bottle. >> Never in a million years would you think an innocent bottle >> Oh, look at that.
So, what can you do to prevent this from happening to your family? Our expert says you can buy a radio frequency finder like this one pretty cheap on Amazon. >> We know this camera has Wi-Fi. We put it here and wow, >> it has been detected. >> That's it. So, just walk around the hotel room and just do this. >> As easy as that. >> Yes. As for the Veldrans caught in our hidden camera experiment, >> do you think I'm a creep? >> No. >> Okay, thank God. Okay, [laughter] we'll take all the cameras with us. We did this to help. >> Yeah, we we took all the We did take all the cameras with us, but doesn't that show you how hard it is to find them, but don't worry, I got your back. There are ways to spot hidden cameras wherever you go. I'm about to show you exactly how to do it. And we have a private investigator coming on with the actual equipment that you can get on Amazon right now. how you don't have to like be in spy shops or do weird stuff. This is stuff that's basic you can get. It's affordable and it can save your privacy. But first, a quick word from our sponsor. This episode is brought to you by Chapter. If you're on Medicare, here's a hard truth. Millions of you are in the wrong plan and you don't even know it. It's quietly costing you thousands. And it's not because you weren't careful. Medicare is complicated. Many brokers just steer you toward plans that pay them more money. That's why I recommend Chapter. They're the only approved Medicare advisor that compares every plan nationwide and tells you straight if you're already in the right one and when a better plan is available. Chapter saves people an average of $1,100 a year. That's verifiable. Best of all, it's free. Just call 609 medhelp for a free Medicare review. That's 609 me h.
So, how do you spot hidden cameras with your phone? I'm about to show you before we get to the devices. This is just something simple you can do because what what you probably don't know and I've been I've worked with hidden cameras for a very very long time. I've been an investigative reporter for decades. I have done tons of hidden camera investigations. So, I have used the pen cameras, the sunglass cameras, the water bottle cameras, the smoke detector cam. I've done all this to catch bad guys. It's what I do. So, I know hidden cameras. They are very hard to spot, but there is something in similar between all of them that is good if you know what to look for. They usually admit an infrared light that you can you can't really see with your naked eye. But in many cases, your camera lens can actually spot it on your phone. So, you want to go into your phone, you want to open the camera app, and even just doing that and shut off the lights. You And if you look really closely, if you suspect something and you zoom your camera in on it, I'm looking up at like my own smoke detector like, does somebody have something up there? Um, if you zoom in and suspect something, you can usually see something. So, what exactly are you looking for? There's a woman who just did this and she found two hidden cameras in a bathroom. Shut off the lights and it's really hard to see. So, we've circled it in red where you can look for the blinking lights. Look very closely. She just did this with her camera by shutting off the lights. Roll clip five.
>> As you can see, I put up towels over the mirror and over this picture. There's cameras in both of these. Okay. And hit the light. Did you see that >> right there? >> There's the camera >> blinking crazy. >> And >> I think it's a little harder to see on the picture frame. We're going to circle where the where the blinking light is. A couple people on my team could see it. I couldn't. But hold on a minute. >> It's right here at the end. Can you see that? >> There it is. >> I still don't see that. But that that is something you can do. Um there's something else you can do with your phone. You can use the flashlight on it. Believe it or not, um you can look some lenses with your flashlight on. You'll be able to see. This is really helpful with wall chargers, like the uh phone chargers in the wall. A lot of hidden cameras in those, so be careful of those. And by the way, the first thing you want to do when you get to an Airbnb or a hotel, look for things that are out of place. Like if you see a wall charger or something, there could be something in that. So this woman did it to show you how to do that. She found um a little camera in a wall charger in a phone charger just using her flashlight. Watch. >> These could be very inconspicuous and look just like a charger. And by looking at it with the naked eye, you wouldn't even see a thing. >> Let's look a little closer. grabbing a flashlight. Look right in the middle. What do you see? What do you see? >> You're at a hotel or an Airbnb and this is plugged in. You just think, "Oh, somebody left this in the bathroom." >> Look for things that are out of place, that are facing an interesting direction, like the shower or a toilet. >> Yeah. And it'll turn bluish or purplish. The lens will usually look bluish or purplish when you do that. But there are actually devices, that's just kind of if you're on the fly and you don't have a device with you, a couple of things that you can do that'll help. But there are actually devices out there that you can buy on Amazon right now or just about anywhere and won't break the bank that can actually find hidden cameras. They're hidden camera finders. I want to bring in our our guest, a private investigator and detective, Ray Rano from Rano Investigative Services. How you doing, Ray? >> How are you? Oh, let me put down my hidden camera. >> How you doing? >> Yeah. Is there is there one in that? >> Absolutely. If you take a look here, looks like a normal coffee cup. And around the ridge, you see that has a little indentations. Uh, one of them is the actual pinhole lens. And then inside is the mechanism where you have the SIM card that you can turn it on and off. You can put on timers. You can do anything you want. You put the cap back on, >> walk into any location, drinking a coffee, and you can do whatever you want. You can leave it on the counter, videotape people that way. Absolutely. They're in everything these days. Where? Yeah. What else? What else are they in? I mean, I know wall chargers. If you My advice is if you see a phone charger that is kind of in an Airbnb, anything left around, is your advice to kind of just get clear the house of anything laying around, water bottles, coffee cups, wall chargers, just get rid of those. Put them off in a drawer. >> I don't I don't leave my house without my equipment because I obviously know what's going on out there. My best advice is anything that doesn't belong or need to be there, take it out and put it in a drawer and close the drawer. If it doesn't need to be there, it it shouldn't be there because they are literally hidden in everyday items. This is a, you know, a digital uh photograph um frame. And if you can see here, I'll try to get as close again. The little O, it's got the little pin hole. >> Oh, yeah. >> Absolutely. And this thing could just sit up >> and it's just not something you would look at. >> You just don't pay attention. Now, this is digital, so they would probably have their own personal photos. But if I could just take a regular frame with this and have just a background of a cabin with trees and a nice lake hanging on the wall, it's just going to run. It's going to transmit right to wherever the individual who owns the property, who has access to the Wi-Fi is the important part. Uh, they're going to be able to view it live. >> That's insane. All right. So, you you have a couple of items of things we can buy that won't break the bank. Like, I want to start with this RF finder, right? >> Yes. I have it here. >> Show me what it does and how it works. >> RFinder stands for radio frequency. Um, there are higher lowerend ones on the market. This is a little bit lowerend, which is fine. It just put you have to put in a little more work to figure out exactly where the signal is coming from. So, when you turn this on, you're going to see it's got the meter. Okay. So, as you go to walk around and you get close to certain items that are actually putting out a signal, this is going to start to vibrate and the indicator light's going to go higher the stronger it gets, the closer it gets to the signal. So, you will immediately turn it on. But, the best thing to do is try to turn off your cell phones, turn off anything that you know is putting out a signal so you don't have that interference. So, go in, turn off all your cell phones. If there's anything that's putting out a signal in the unit, unplug it just to get rid of some of the chatter in the room, basically we call it. Um, so if you eliminate that, it's going to be a lot easier to figure out where the signal's coming from. And then you just generally go around and sweep. This is a little bit of light in case you have to look behind a dresser or something you see in and you scan every inch of the place, you know, eye level. Obviously, if you're going to get up higher to a smoke detector, you're going to need to stand on a chair. But you get close to it with this within maybe a foot or two, it'll start to really take off on the actual indicator. Uh, and once it starts getting a little bit higher, you know you're closer to the signal. You have to look at that area at that time and then figure out what here could have something in it and just start taking everything apart. >> Wow. And you can just get that on Amazon. You It's 50 bucks. I know there are some that are that probably a little better that are in the a couple few hundred. Um but here we have it on the screen right now. Here's one of them for 50 bucks. >> Yep. That is the same one here. That's exactly that one here, one I just showed you. >> And then you have >> and you just walk around the house. >> Yeah, that's it. And then you have a little higher end one here. See, it's already going off. It's a little stronger. It picks up more signal and it has a little bit more squelching capability that just to help you direct on where the signal is coming from. But you don't got to break the bank. If you're in a particular area like especially an Airbnb, you will find it with the other device as well. >> And you have some other ones, too. There's a you have a lens finder, an optical finder. >> Yeah, these come in all shapes and sizes. It's kind of similar to what you were trying to portray with the light from your cell phone. Um, this actually is an indicator. see the red blinking lights because all lenses are reflective by nature. So, they actually give you the glass screen to look through so that you're not blinding yourself with the red light as you look through the actual red light which is not disturbing your eye. Any lens, whether it's going to be uh one that's self-contained where it's recording onto an SD card or if it's transmitting out through the Wi-Fi or other sources, a transmitter built into the unit, this is going to reflect that lens. if you turn off the lights especially, but even with the lights on during the day, any lens, even a pinhole lens, and I'll try to show you here. So, here is the love is the word here. And as I do that, can you get closer? >> We can't see. We can't see. >> Yeah, you can't. But it does. >> But for you, what what does it look like? What does it look like for you when you look through that? >> It just basically looks like because the red lighting itself doesn't really reflect off of the surface. I'm putting it on that bright. But the actual lens is shooting that red back at me. So I just see a red spot spot spot spot. And it's just indicating that there is a lens whether it's working or not. That we don't know until we take it apart. But it's definitely there. >> Wow. Anything else we should buy? Um any other little gadgets you have there or those the two big ones? >> Well, scanners and uh lens finders are going to be your big ones uh in this case. But you have to remember though, not everything runs off of a signal, you know, like this this particular unit here is actually self-contained. So, I can place this down. Let's say I'm an owner of an Airbnb. Um, I don't have to watch it live because I have full access to the place before you go in and after you go in. So, I'll put the SIM card built into the side here. Just put a little SIM card right in there, turn it on, put it down, hang it on the wall, whatever. You go about your business for the three or four days you rent the unit. I come back in, pull out the card, pop it in my laptop, and now I've got everything. >> You're watching me in the bathroom. You're watching me in the bedroom. There's also something you can do. Um, and I know you like this one, so I want to show this video. There's a there is a um a network scanner. There's just an app on your phone called thing that you can download and it will literally check the Wi-Fi because a lot of these cameras, as you mentioned, where right, they they are transmitting out so these creeps can watch it in real time wherever they are. are sort of like that experiment I did in the beginning of the show. You can be 2 miles away or 2,000 miles away. They can watch you having sex in your bedroom. They can watch you showering in the bathroom. They can watch you doing whatever you want. Um, and this app scans the Wi-Fi in that area to see what devices are on a roll clip seven real quick. And we'll talk about this on the back end.
>> It's picked up that there's an unknown camera in our network. So, in the results here, we can see unknown camera has been discovered. So, Fing can discover various devices in your network. Notice here we see a Raspberry Pi. Here we see a router. Here we see a whole bunch of phones, but it can also discover IP cameras and other devices and then you can decide what to do with those devices automatically block them or permit them and deny only the devices that you manually want to deny. It's really up to you. >> That's pretty cool. So, what do you do you like thing to download for all of our apps? >> I do. I do. Um, you know, a lot of situations where I do bug sweeping uh for clients is in their own home between spouses that are getting divorced and they have access to their own Wi-Fi. So, I always tell them one, change the password right away. That cuts off any uh video that's going outward. >> Secondly, um, go through and see what was connected in there. You'll be able to tell what was connected to that, but they have access to the password to get in and check it. When you go to an Airbnb, you do not have access. So that's where this app comes in because you can still pull that in and you can still search somebody else's Wi-Fi network to see what's on it even though you don't have access to it, >> right? So you can see, oh, why are there four cameras on here? Why are there three cameras on here? And you can actually on that app disable them. >> Yeah, you can actually Yeah, just X them right out. Absolutely. It'll block it basically. >> That's unbelievable. There are some creeps out there. Uh thank you so much for for being here. I really really appreciate it. Thanks. >> You're very welcome. Just one tip if it's okay to say if somebody does find one of these units. >> Yeah. If somebody finds one of these units in an Airbnb, in a hotel, in their personal home during a separation, do not pull it out. >> Call the police department, have them come in because you want to maintain the chain of custody. If you start pulling things out and getting your fingerprints on it, they'll have a harder time getting that individual arrested. So, leave it to the police, find it, report it, and have them pull it. >> Yeah. Because we want to catch these bastards. We don't want to just pull the thing out and let them get away with it. We want to get them in the act. >> Uh, which is the best way to convict them. Thank you. >> Thank you for all. Damn right. Hallelujah. Thank you so much. Appreciate it. Wow.
Um, if you if you found this show helpful, it's bad enough when the bad guys are hurting us. And by the way, I should mention um Airbnb and Verbbo do not allow interior cameras for Verbbo never has, I don't believe, but Airbnb used to until very recently. They allowed indoor cameras, but the host had to disclose them. But now, because of all of these hidden camera complaints and hosts not disclosing them, Airbnb doesn't allow them. Now, these creeps aren't following the rules anyway by putting cameras in bathrooms. So, they're not going to listen to the rules. That's why you got to follow these tips. But, if you think it's bad that the bad guys are doing this to us, I want you to check out this other video I just did in this investigation about what grocery stores are doing. They are watching us, too. maybe not in your bathroom, but a lot of other private stuff. I'm going to get into all that as well.