A Mortifying Mix-Up: The Hidden Camera Mishap

When I was 14, I spent the night at my friend’s house. Her parents, especially her dad, barely spoke.

At two a.m., I noticed a hidden camera in the room. I panicked and tossed a blanket to cover it. Two minutes later, her dad stormed in, shouting, “Idiot! That’s a surveillance camera—I use it to watch the street!” I was completely embarrassed.

Apparently, the street they lived on had a reputation for being unsafe, and he was especially protective of his brand-new car. He monitored the street obsessively, and the camera was placed in his daughter’s room only because it had direct access to the balcony where the cables ran.

When I covered the lens, the system sent an alert to his phone, triggering an alarm. I was mortified. Needless to say, I never went back to their house again.