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Family forced to find emergency accommodation after disturbing find in Airbnb


A Kiwi family was forced to find emergency accommodation while on holiday in Europe after they discovered a hidden camera in their Airbnb.

Andrew and Nealie Barker stopped in Ireland on March 3, as part of a six-month European holiday, when the trip took a sinister turn.

A Kiwi family was forced to find emergency accommodation while travelling in Europe when they discovered a hidden camera in their Airbnb. Source: Nealie Barker/Facebook
A Kiwi family was forced to find emergency accommodation while travelling in Europe when they discovered a hidden camera in their Airbnb. Source: Nealie Barker/Facebook

Alarm bells rang when IT consultant Andrew Barker connected his mobile phone to the Cork property’s wi-fi and noticed a device registered to the network called “IP Camera”.

The curious techie was able to connect, allowing his family to watch themselves on a live feed.

Mrs Barker shared pictures to her Facebook account including a smoke alarm case in the rental’s living area, which her hubby believed concealed the camera.

“After Andy hacked the live-feed and called the owner to ask what the fudge sticks was going on, it all blew up and we ended up leaving the house and having to find emergency accommodation,” she wrote.

The mum said she called the host on the phone, who initially denied he had hidden cameras in his home and hung up on her, Stuff NZ reported.

But he later fessed up about having cameras to “protect his investment” after the guest presented him with “irrefutable proof”.

“We got our money back and the guy is currently under investigation with his Airbnb listing removed,” she wrote on the family’s travel blog.

The Barkers were able to watch themselves on camera during a live feed on their mobile phone. Source: Nealie Barker/Facebook
The Barkers were able to watch themselves on camera during a live feed on their mobile phone. Source: Nealie Barker/Facebook

Airbnb forbids surveillance cameras

According to Stuff, the family said Airbnb’s first response to their complaint was “hopeless” with the company saying there was no wrong-doing on their part.

Airbnb has since apologised for its handling of the situation.

The family has now been given a full refund of their accommodation and the listing has been removed from the platform.

“Our original handling of this incident did not meet the high standards we set for ourselves, and we have apologised to the family and fully refunded their stay,” a spokesperson told Stuff.

The website’s privacy policy forbids hidden cameras and requires any surveillance device on the property to be properly disclosed in the listing before reservations are made.

“We prohibit any surveillance devices that are in or that observe the interior of certain private spaces (such as bedrooms and bathrooms) regardless of whether they’ve been disclosed,” the Airbnb rules stated.

Couples shocked to find hidden cameras in Airbnb bedroom

This is not the first time a hidden camera was discovered during an Airbnb stay.

A couple was hoping to have a “romantic getaway” in California, US, last month when they noticed something off about the smoke detector positioned in front of the bed.

Another couple, this time on holiday in Toronto, Canada, were too creeped out to stay at their Airbnb apartment after they found a spy camera hidden in a clock pointed at the bed.

Yahoo News has contacted Cork Police about whether they are investigating the incident.

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