
Illegal spy cameras are still easy to find in Shenzhen’s gadget paradise
Sales of secret filming gear is rampant in China, both online and offline, report shows
In one case, the CCTV reporter bought a fake power socket with a camera hidden in one of the holes and double-sided tape on the back to allow for mounting on a wall. It included an SD card socket and a charging port at the bottom.

In another example from the report, one shop demonstrated a different power socket that hides the camera in a small hole in the bottom-right corner. The video can also be watched in real time from a smartphone app.
In recent months, a series of events that show just how easy it is to secretly film people in hotels has unnerved people in China. The apparent prevalence of the practice has raised concerns about people’s privacy and safety.
Secret cameras are certainly not hard to find in Huaqiangbei. I myself found one last March while looking for the weirdest gadgets for sale at the popular tech market.
In the midst of weird devices like a bluetooth speaker hat and a gun-shaped AR game console, I came across a spy camera that doubles as a thumb drive. The camera was hidden in the bottom of the drive, and the video could be found on the internal storage when plugged into a computer. Similar to devices in the CCTV report, the package didn’t display any information about the manufacturer.

Even while walking around outside, I was approached by vendors holding signs advertising spy gear for sale, including spy cameras, GPS trackers and devices that help people cheat at poker and mahjong.

The CCTV report showed similar vendors out on the street, operating discreetly. They don’t carry around any of the gear with them, but if you show interest, you might be taken to a nearby restaurant or coffee shop so they can introduce you to the products.
Not even sellers of illegal spy equipment can avoid ecommerce, though. Spy camera sellers can also be found on Taobao and Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, CCTV reported.
(Abacus is a unit of the South China Morning Post, which is owned by Alibaba, owner of Taobao.)
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