Dealing with Neighbor’s Security Cameras Aimed at Your Property: What to Do
We’ve all been there: a neighbor’s intrusive camera pointing towards your apartment or into your private space. Nobody likes to be watched, and it’s only fair if you’re looking for a way to stop your neighbor’s camera from looking into your private space, but how do you block a neighbor’s camera?
Firstly, you want to confirm if blocking the camera is the right thing to do in that scenario. The last thing you want to happen is to get into legal trouble because you stopped your neighbor’s camera for some privacy. Then, it would be best to learn how to stop the camera from securing your privacy.
In this article, I’ll show you exactly how to block that intrusive camera from looking directly into your space or apartment. You’ll learn about the possible legal issues, how to avoid them, and how to blind a neighbor’s camera to prevent it from looking at you.
What Does It Mean Jam a Security Camera?
Before moving on with the article, clarifying what “jamming” a security camera means is essential. Most people understand the concept of jamming to mean hacking the camera to prevent it from working, but the description can be somewhat more specific.
When someone jams a security camera, they disrupt their feed by feeding them negative signals to prevent them from working correctly, either temporarily or permanently. You’ll need a signal jammer to jam a security camera, and as you expect, a signal jammer is a device that disrupts the performance of a device that uses signals.
Generally, jamming devices are illegal in most countries, including the United States. You cannot legally sell a signal jammer within the country and be fined heavily for trying to jam a security camera system in the US. That gives you an idea of how legal it is in the country.
Can You Jam Your Neighbor’s Camera?
Jamming a wireless camera can make it stop working either temporarily or permanently, but it’s typically more accessible and more practical in movies than in real life. While there are ways to jam a camera, most recent IP cameras are designed to counter them and repair themselves in seconds, making those strategies useless.
Before attempting to jam your neighbor’s camera, it’s crucial to ask: is that the only option? While it sounds somewhat plausible, a judge may not accept protecting your privacy as a valid reason for attempting to destroy your neighbor’s security system. Before watching your privacy, you should also try to protect yourself from legal troubles.
If you’re asking about the legality, you cannot jam your neighbor’s camera, even if it’s pointing right into your apartment. The safe thing to do is to talk to the neighbor about it to see if they’ll consider changing the camera’s position. If they don’t budge, you can always alert the police to help protect your privacy.
On the other hand, it’s possible to jam a security camera if you’re only asking about the possibility of the act itself. However, you should be aware that not all security cameras can be jammed. While a jammer may work on a wireless camera, wired CCTV security systems are not susceptible, as they don’t use any signals.
In summary, you might be able to jam your neighbor’s security camera, but you shouldn’t. Unless you’re comfortable defending your actions in court and possibly facing a fine, you should generally tread the legal path to protect your privacy.
How to Deal with Neighbor’s Security Cameras Aimed at Your Property
Instead of jumping straight to jamming your neighbor’s security camera, it helps to learn how to stop the camera from pointing at you. While you may think your neighbor is intentionally trying to spy on you, they may only be installing the camera for security purposes, unaware that it’s making you uncomfortable.
Whatever reason they might have for pointing cameras at sensitive parts of your apartment, this section will show you how to stop them. Here are some ways to control your neighbor’s camera from pointing right at you.
Talk to the neighbor
Resolving matters amicably is usually the wisest way to stop your neighbor’s camera from pointing right at your house. Before trying anything drastic, you should consider letting your neighbor know you’re uncomfortable with the cameras they have, and they might be willing to make adjustments.
From experience, this method works in most cases, as most people will acknowledge the mistake and make amends unless they specifically installed the camera to spy on you or get on your nerves. You can jump to more drastic measures if the latter is the case.
Talk to a lawyer or call the cops
The easiest way to remove security cameras from your private area without legal trouble is by contacting someone familiar with home security laws. If you can establish that the camera is looking into your personal space, you can remove it.
Talking to a lawyer is the wiser option if you’re not sure your neighbor is breaking any rules. To be clear, if the security camera can only see parts of your house visible to the public without entering any doors, you may not have a case. Otherwise, it’s best to have police officers hear what you say.
Get a mediator
If you cannot reach a one-on-one settlement with the owner of the security camera, you can get a well-respected community member to mediate between you. You should contact the cameras removed if you’re in the right, but you won’t always be.
Getting a mediator should come before running to the cops, as it’s a more peaceful option that could help remove your neighbor’s intrusive camera at no cost to you.
While that sums up the recommended ways to stop your neighbor’s camera from pointing at your house, there are other ways. For instance, you can jam or blind your neighbor’s camera, which is an effective but potentially dangerous way to achieve the same objective.
If you think blinding your neighbor’s camera is the most effective approach, the following section will explain how to go about it. However, you should note that anything you read here is only for educational purposes, and we won’t take responsibility for any legal trouble resulting from it.
How Do I Blind My Neighbor’s Camera?
While you’re only used to seeing cameras blinded on the TV, it’s possible to replicate the act if you’re not scared of some legal trouble. Before considering blinding a camera, you should try dialoguing with the camera’s owner; they might be willing to change the placement if it makes you uncomfortable.
If you think blinding your neighbor’s camera is the only solution, you should also be aware that it comes with many potential issues. For one, you may be liable for a massive fine if the camera operator decides to press charges.
If all those don’t bother you, here are some creative ways to blind a neighbor’s camera:
1. Block it off with high structures like trees or fences
The most unproblematic way to block your neighbor’s camera would be to erect structures tall enough to stop it from looking into your property. Note that those structures must be on your property; you should be fine if you don’t physically contact the camera itself.
The downside of this method is the high cost of erecting fences or trees. As explained earlier, dialoguing with your neighbor will neither require much labor nor cost you tons of money. If peaceful dialog fails, this method is the most unproblematic way to blind a neighbor’s camera.
2. Using a laser pointer
If you’re considering blinding your neighbor’s security camera, it could work, but you’d also be destroying their property, which is illegal in most US states. Getting caught trying to blind a camera using a laser pointer could spell a heavy fine or even some jail time. However, it’s up to you to decide if the risk is worth the reward.
Before moving to block the camera using the laser, it helps to try concealing your identity first. You can always get cheap masks with several infrared lights to make your head like a glowing orb to prevent the camera from spotting you during practice.
Again, we don’t recommend using a laser pointer to jam your neighbor’s camera, as that is likely illegal in your jurisdiction, even if it’s pointing directly at your apartment. If you feel unsafe, you can always contact the police for legal ways to get rid of an intrusive neighboring camera.
Conclusion
The safest way to block a neighbor’s camera is not to stop it, as you’re likely doing something illegal by trying to blind or jam a camera. If you believe you need to do it for any reason, this article has recommended some safe ways to prevent your neighbor’s camera from pointing right at your apartment.
