So this happened over the past few months, but I only found out a few days ago.
I (28F) work in a pretty standard office environment. Nothing too fancy, but we have this one room that’s kind of like a chill zone—a couch, vending machine, a couple of lockers for our personal stuff, and it’s where people hang out during breaks. No desks, no computers, just a place to unwind. I’ve been using that room a lot. Sometimes when I come back from lunch a little sweaty, I bring a spare T-shirt and just quickly change in there. I always thought it was no big deal—it’s not a public space, just coworkers, and I made sure no one else was around.
Also… I’ve definitely done stuff like: Picking my nose like no one’s watching (because I thought no one was). Complaining loudly about my boss on the phone with my sister. Anyway, two days ago a coworker pulled me aside and gently let me know that there’s a security camera in that room. I froze.
Apparently, it’s there for safety reasons—since we keep some lockers in there—but it still records everything. I had no idea. I’m now spiraling thinking about who might have seen the footage. I don’t know the camera’s angle. I don’t know how long they store the recordings. I don’t know if my boss has ever reviewed them. But I do know I’ve said some truly unfiltered things in that room. Not to mention changed shirts more than once. Now I’m scared to even make eye contact with anyone at work.
What do I do?
Do I go to HR and ask if I can see the footage? Is it better to just pretend nothing happened and never enter that room again? How much damage control is even possible?
TL;DR: TIFU by not realizing there’s a camera in our office chill room
Comments
Security footage isn’t going to be looked at unless there is a reason. So long as nobody has a reason to look, they won’t.
Locate the camera, look at it square on, and pick your nose .. Ultimate power move
It’s fine very high chance no one ever checks it unless something happened like a theft etc I wouldn’t worry about it at all
You need to just let it go. If they are recording 24/7 they probably don’t monitor it constantly – only when there is a report of theft or some kind of violence / harassment. Most likely in your situation nobody ever saw the video and nobody ever will. If they are recording constantly there are thousands of hours to watch and why would they pull up your specific moment of criticism? Just beware that most places have some kind of recording these days and keep your private thoughts to environments that you control.
It could’ve been worse it could’ve been worse. You should be happy you found out about this before something else went down in that room.
Regarding things you’ve said out loud, are you sure the camera records sound?
I made out (like, passionate make out session) with a co worker in the break room one time and realized later there was a camera in there! But apparently no checks it unless something happens like theft so I don’t think anyone ever saw it haha.
It might not have audio, I work at a place that has cameras everywhere (work with cash every day) and they have no audio, we all would have been fired within a few weeks if they did.
I wouldn’t worry, nobody’s checking that footage unless something happens in there. It’s all on a server somewhere being completely ignored. If you ask to see the footage some dude is going to have to go through hundreds of hours of footage just to pull out the bits when you whip your top off. Hr are likely to have a problem with that and then you’ll probably get in trouble.
Just take the L and don’t steal anybody else lunch and fierce them to go through the footage.
Another brand new account posting something ridiculous for karma.
If you are in a two-party state they can’t record audio unless you have been notified and agreed to it. As most have said I wouldn’t worry about it, unless there is a reason for it most companies aren’t endlessly scrolling through footage.
It’s not that deep – cameras are there for like office break ins and stuff, not some dumb employee (no offence) talking crap and changing.
In an office, it’s best to assume there always is a camera in the future because there typically is. Whether or not they’re even good cameras or record audio is a different topic – they typically aren’t if the building / office is old.
Just learn your lesson and don’t do silly things in an office – it’s fine.
I work in IT security for a large corporation. Nobody is actively watching the feeds or reviewing them unless they have a reason to. Retention on video really depends on the company policy and how much storage they have on their NVR. A good guess is usually 90 days but its really up to whoevers in charge of the system.
If they havent said anything to you yet about it then odds are nobodys seen the footage. If you wait long enough the data will be overwritten by new data after the retention period is up.
What caused your friend to tell you there was a camera? Did they say it because they knew what you were doing, or did they just come to you out of the blue?
Most likely no one is looking unless something like a theft or vandalism was reported.
Are companies in your country not required to inform their employees about this kind of surveillance? Not to mention ethics. Sounds like a FU on their part.
ignore it and move on. security is not sitting there watching hours of footage for no reason. they’ll only ever look at it if there is a reason to. bringing it up to hr is a horribly stupid idea. HR exists to serve the company, not you. you’re asking HR to go look at tape of you complaining about your boss? second of all, dont ever say shit while at work that you wouldnt want someone to hear – they will.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streisand_effect
Most companies don’t review footage unless an employee says something was stolen. I would just let it go and pretend nothing happened.
If the cameras are anything like the ones at my job, they don’t record audio and they likely only hold the footage for 30-days (maybe even less) if they are recording 24/7.
Like others have said, 9/10 times cameras are only reviewed when they need to be. If nothing has happened recently that would make them check the cameras, you’re most likely fine!
Where in the world are you? CCTV has to be declared in the UK, not sure about elsewhere
Most cameras keep the recording for 15-30 days. Don’t do anything weird from now on and let it go unnoticed.
Cue Streisand effect.
Security reasons my ass…
Beyond what everyone said in theory to show you the footage they would need to watch it to pull your bits out. They are not going to want to do that and that is the exact opposite of what you want to happen. Just ignore it and move on with this new information.
The tl;dr is mean to be a summary of your post, not a repeat of the title.
You never chat shit about work at work. Rookie mistake.
And if you’re changing somewhere that isn’t private like a toilet then it was only a matter of time before someone saw you.
Imo you were playing with fire the whole time. This was the best case scenario for you.
The days of most security cameras being monitored 24/7 are long gone because recording technology means footage can just be played back. It’s only really high-security buildings or areas that need someone watching screens in a back room. Even then, with motion detection technology they don’t need to be on/monitored 24/7 as they’ll send an alert if they sense movement.
Anyone else think 28F referred to the temperature of the chill room?