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BBC Investigation Reveals Widespread Hidden Camera Porn Industry in China
A shocking BBC investigation has uncovered a thriving underground industry in China where thousands of hotel guests are being secretly filmed having sex, with the footage sold online to paying subscribers. The seven-month investigation by BBC Eye found that criminals are using hidden cameras as small as pencil erasers to livestream intimate moments from hotel rooms across China.
'We were on holiday, just a normal couple enjoying our time together. To discover that complete strangers were watching us, commenting on our bodies, our intimacy - it's devastating,' said Eric (pseudonym), one of the victims who discovered footage of himself and his girlfriend online.
How the Operation Works
The BBC identified six different websites and apps advertising access to spy-cam footage on Telegram, a messaging platform banned in China but widely used for illegal content sharing. Investigators found evidence of more than 180 hidden cameras, with about half active at any given time during their monitoring period. The footage is sold through 'agents' who operate on behalf of higher-ups who install the cameras and maintain the streaming infrastructure.
One particularly active agent, known only as 'AKA,' operated a Telegram channel with approximately 10,000 members. For a payment of around €55, subscribers gained access to live feeds from five different hotel rooms. The BBC estimates that AKA alone earned at least €18,000 since April 2025 from this illicit trade.
Victims' Stories and Psychological Impact
The investigation highlights the case of a man who, while searching for pornography online in 2023, stumbled upon a video showing him and his girlfriend having sex in a Shenzhen hotel room. The footage had been recorded just three weeks earlier. 'I felt violated, exposed, and completely powerless. This has affected our relationship in ways we're still dealing with,' he told BBC investigators.
When guests enter their rooms, members of the Telegram channels discuss the live footage, often making derogatory comments about the women, who are regularly called 'sluts' and other demeaning terms.
Regulatory Challenges and Public Response
Despite new regulations that took effect in April 2025 prohibiting camera installation in hotel rooms and requiring warning signs in surveillance areas, the BBC investigation shows the problem persists. The regulations, which complement China's Personal Information Protection Law, were meant to address growing privacy concerns but appear insufficient to stop determined criminals.
Chinese women have become increasingly aware of the threat, with online communities sharing tips on detecting hidden cameras. Some even resort to extreme measures - 'I know people who set up tents inside hotel rooms to ensure they're not being filmed,' one woman told the BBC.
The BBC managed to trace one camera to a hotel in Zhengzhou, where they found a device hidden in a ventilation unit, wired directly into the building's electrical system and pointed directly at the bed.
Sources
BBC Investigation: China's spy-cam porn industry
