For landlords renting out shared apartments or subdivided rental units, installing security cameras at entrances or in hallways may seem perfectly reasonable for preventing theft and maintaining security in common areas.
But here is the question: Just because a landlord owns the property, does that mean cameras can be installed anywhere?
If a camera is pointed directly at a tenant’s door, records when the tenant comes and goes every day, or even captures footage inside the tenant’s room, the situation becomes very different. Where the camera is installed, what it records, and why it is being used can all affect whether the surveillance is lawful.
Simply put, installing security cameras in common areas for legitimate security purposes is not necessarily illegal. However, once surveillance extends into a tenant’s private living space, it may cross the line into an invasion of privacy or even criminal liability.
What Does the Law Say?
Criminal Code Article 315-1:
“A person who commits any of the following acts shall be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than three years, detention, or a fine not exceeding NT$300,000:
1. Without justification, uses tools or equipment to observe or eavesdrop on another person's non-public activities, speech, conversations, or private body parts.
2. Without justification, secretly records another person's non-public activities, speech, conversations, or private body parts by means of audio recording, photography, video recording, or electromagnetic records.”
✨ Plain Explanation: The legal risk with a security camera is not simply whether it “records someone.” The important question is whether it is being used without a legitimate reason to record activities in which another person has a reasonable expectation of privacy.
A tenant’s private room, bathroom, or toilet is clearly different from a shared hallway. These are private spaces where people normally expect not to be watched. If a landlord secretly records a tenant in such areas, the conduct may constitute an offense against privacy under the Criminal Code.
By contrast, entrances, stairways, and ordinary shared hallways are places where multiple people normally pass through, so the expectation of privacy is generally lower. However, this does not mean that a landlord may continuously monitor a particular tenant’s daily activities without limitation simply because the camera is located in a common area.
⚖️ Legal Source: Criminal Code Article 315-1 – Law.moj.gov.tw
Personal Data Protection Act, Article 19:
“1. Except for the personal data specified under Paragraph 1 of Article 6, the collection or processing of personal data by a non-government agency shall have a specific purpose and shall meet one of the following circumstances:
- Where it is expressly provided by law.
- Where there is a contractual or quasi-contractual relationship with the data subject and appropriate security measures have been adopted.
- Where the personal data has been made public by the data subject or has otherwise been lawfully made public.
- Where it is necessary for an academic research institution to conduct statistics or academic research in the public interest, and the data has been processed by the provider or collected in such a manner that the specific data subject cannot be identified from the method of disclosure.
- Where the data subject has given consent.
- Where it is necessary for the promotion of public interests.
- Where the personal data is obtained from a source generally available to the public; provided, however, that this shall not apply where the data subject has prohibited the processing or use of such data and the protection of the data subject’s interests clearly outweighs other interests.
- Where the rights and interests of the data subject are not infringed.
2. Where the collector or processor becomes aware, or is notified by the data subject, that the processing or use of personal data is prohibited pursuant to the proviso of Subparagraph 7 of the preceding Paragraph, the collector or processor shall, on its own initiative or at the request of the data subject, delete or cease processing or using such personal data.”
✨ Plain Explanation: If security-camera footage can identify tenants, visitors, or their activities, the recording may also involve the collection and processing of personal data.
A landlord cannot simply do whatever they want with the footage because the camera belongs to them. There should be a legitimate purpose for collecting the footage, and its storage, use, or disclosure should not go beyond that purpose without a proper legal basis.
⚖️ Legal Source: Personal Data Protection Act Article 19 – Law.moj.gov.tw
Criminal Code Article 306:
“A person who without reason enters the dwelling house or structure of another, or a land or vessel adjacent or surrounded thereto, shall be sentenced to imprisonment for not more than one year, short-term imprisonment, or a fine of not more than nine thousand dollars. A person who without reason conceals himself therein, or remains therein after having been ordered to leave, shall be subject to the same punishment.”
✨ Plain Explanation: A landlord may own the property, but once it has been rented out, the tenant has the right to use and occupy the rented space and to enjoy privacy in daily life during the lease.
This means a landlord cannot simply say, “It’s my property,” and enter the tenant’s room whenever they want to install a camera, inspect equipment, or conduct surveillance. Entering a tenant’s residence without a legitimate reason may also raise criminal issues involving unlawful entry.
⚖️ Legal Source: Criminal Code Article 306 – Law.moj.gov.tw
Where Can Landlords Install Security Cameras?
Not every part of a rental property is off-limits to security cameras.
In a subdivided rental property, for example, multiple tenants may use the same entrances and common areas. Installing cameras in common areas for purposes such as preventing theft, identifying unauthorized visitors, or maintaining general security is more likely to have a legitimate justification.
Common locations may include:
- Shared building entrances and main entryways
- Shared stairways and common hallways
- Parking areas or shared garages
- Shared lounges or common rooms
- Shared kitchens and laundry or drying areas
However, placing a camera in a common area is only the first part of the analysis. Where the camera is actually pointed matters just as much.
For example, a camera may technically be installed in a hallway but be aimed directly at the door of one particular rental unit, recording when that tenant leaves, returns home, and who comes to visit. Over time, this footage could reveal a detailed picture of the tenant’s daily routine.
Privacy protection is not determined solely by whether a location is classified as “public” or “private.” Even in a common or publicly accessible area, a person may still have a reasonable expectation that their daily activities will not be subjected to prolonged and continuous surveillance.
Therefore, a camera may be installed in a common area, but that does not mean unlimited surveillance is allowed.
Where Should Landlords Not Install Security Cameras?
The clearest red line involves private spaces where tenants have a high expectation of privacy.
A tenant’s private room, individual suite, bathroom, toilet, or changing area is not a place that a landlord may freely monitor simply for the purpose of “managing the rental property.”
Bathrooms, toilets, and changing areas involve an especially high degree of personal privacy.
Another issue that can easily be overlooked is a camera that is physically installed in a common area but records the inside of a private space.
For example, a hallway camera might be positioned so that when a tenant opens the door, the camera can see the tenant’s bed, desk, or even a changing area inside the room. In that situation, whether the surveillance is lawful cannot be determined simply by saying, “The camera is installed in the hallway.” What the camera actually captures also matters.
Why Can a Hallway Camera Still Cause Privacy Problems?
Suppose a subdivided rental property contains six individual rooms.
The landlord installs one camera near the stairway to prevent unauthorized people from entering the building. The camera mainly records the shared entrance. This type of surveillance has a stronger connection to a legitimate security purpose.
But suppose the landlord installs another camera aimed specifically at one tenant’s door, recording when that tenant comes home, who visits, and how long visitors stay. The legal analysis may be very different.
Even if a security camera records only the entrance to a residence, that does not mean privacy concerns disappear completely. If the camera continuously records residents and visitors over a long period of time, the footage may reveal a particular resident’s daily routine, social interactions, and other patterns of private life. This may raise issues involving privacy rights and the right to informational self-determination.
So the real question is not simply, “Is this a common area?” The purpose, angle, scope, duration, and amount of information collected should all be considered.
Security Cameras Should Generally Avoid Recording Audio
Many modern home security cameras do more than record video. They also contain microphones and may even allow landlords to listen remotely in real time.
This can create additional legal risks.
A camera may visually record only a common hallway, while its microphone captures a private conversation taking place inside a tenant’s room, near the doorway, or elsewhere nearby. Article 315-1 of the Criminal Code protects not only private activities and images, but also non-public speech and conversations.
Therefore, if the purpose of the camera is simply theft prevention and general security, turning off unnecessary audio recording can significantly reduce legal risk.
Should Landlords Tell Tenants About Security Cameras?
In practice, transparency is the safer approach.
For example, the landlord can explain when the lease is signed that security cameras are installed in common areas and provide a clear notice such as:
“Video surveillance is in operation at the shared entrances of this building solely for security management and incident investigation purposes.”
The landlord can also explain where the cameras are located, their general recording range, and how the footage will be used.
This not only helps prevent tenants from feeling that they are being secretly monitored, but also makes the legitimate security purpose of the cameras clearer.
Especially when cameras cover a relatively broad area, providing advance notice and obtaining consent can help reduce the risk of future disputes involving privacy rights, personal data collection, or the lease relationship.
Can Security Camera Footage Be Shared in a Group Chat?
This is another area where landlords can easily run into trouble.
Suppose a pair of shoes disappears from a common hallway. After reviewing the footage, the landlord notices that one tenant walked through the area and immediately posts the video in the residents’ LINE group with the message, “This is probably the person who took them.”
That can create significant legal risk.
If the footage was originally collected for security, theft prevention, or incident investigation, it should generally be used reasonably for those purposes. Possessing the footage does not automatically give the landlord the right to publish it, forward it to others, or upload it to social media.
If the footage appears to show theft, property damage, or another possible crime, preserving the relevant recording and providing it to the police is generally safer than publicly distributing the footage.
🎥 Related Reading: Can Landlords Enter Rental Units Without Permission in Taiwan?
🎬 Related Reading: Without Landlord’s Consent, Can Tenants Invite Others to Share Rent in Taiwan?
🍿 Related Reading: Do Tenants Have to Obey Landlord’s House Rules in Taiwan? Are They Legally Binding?
⭐️ Related Reading: Can Landlords or Tenants Call the Police Over a Rental Dispute in Taiwan?
Conclusion: The Real Question Is Not Simply Whether a Landlord Can Install Cameras
Security cameras are not inherently illegal. In subdivided rental properties or common areas of apartment buildings, properly installed cameras may help prevent theft, resolve disputes involving shared spaces, and clarify what happened when an incident occurs.
The real legal boundary depends on why the camera is being used, where it is installed, what it records, and how the footage is used.
Recording shared entrances and ordinary common areas for legitimate security purposes generally presents a lower legal risk. But once a camera captures the inside of a tenant’s room, bathroom, toilet, or another private area—or is used to continuously monitor a particular tenant’s daily routine—the situation becomes very different.
The safest approach is still to provide advance notice, minimize the recording range, avoid capturing private spaces, disable unnecessary audio recording, and properly safeguard recorded footage. The purpose of security cameras should be to make the rental environment safer and give tenants greater peace of mind—not to turn everyday rental life into a 24-hour reality show that creates unnecessary stress and tension.
