- Eric found himself unknowingly filmed in a hotel room in Shenzhen through hidden spy cameras
- The intimate footage was uploaded online without consent and viewed by thousands of people
- Eric and his girlfriend Emily were horrified and now avoid hotels and public outings without hats
What began as a casual search for porn online quickly turned into a nightmare when a man realised the couple in the video was him and his girlfriend.
In 2023, Eric, identified by a pseudonym, stayed at a hotel in Shenzhen, southern China, with his girlfriend. Weeks later, while browsing an adult content channel he regularly used, he stumbled upon a video.
Within seconds, he recognised the hotel room, the sequence of events, and then themselves, according to the BBC.
The footage showed the couple entering the room, placing their bags down and later engaging in intimate moments, all unknowingly recorded by a hidden camera inside the hotel room. The video had been uploaded without their consent and was accessible to thousands of viewers online.
Describing the experience as terrifying, Eric, from Hong Kong, said a hidden spy camera had recorded him and his girlfriend inside their hotel room for nearly an hour.
He told the BBC that he was initially drawn to porn videos because they felt more real to him than conventional pornography, as the people being filmed didn't know they were on a spy camera.
"What drew me in is the fact that the people don't know they're being filmed. I think traditional porn feels very staged, very fake," he said.
While watching one of the videos, he suddenly realised that he himself was in it.
When Eric broke the news to his partner, Emily, she initially didn't believe him and thought he was joking. When she saw the video herself, she got terrified that people she knew, including friends, family members, or colleagues, might have already watched the footage online.
Horrified, the couple didn't talk to each other for several weeks. According to LadBible, the couple often wear hats when they go out, and they try to stay away from hotels as much as possible.
Eric said the experience completely changed how he felt about spy-camera pornography. He no longer enjoys watching such content and claims he has stopped visiting these websites. The only time he returns, he said, is to check whether the video of him and Emily has appeared again.
Spycam porn has existed in China for more than ten years, even though making and sharing porn is illegal in the country. These videos are secretly recorded, usually in hotel rooms.
In April last year, the Chinese government introduced new rules to try to control the problem. Under these regulations, hotel owners are required to regularly inspect their rooms for hidden cameras.
Despite these measures, the problem persists, and thousands of recent spy-cam videos filmed inside hotel rooms are still being sold as porn on multiple websites. According to a BBC investigation, more than 180 hidden cameras were discovered in hotel rooms across China.
