More and more often it happens
that, for security reasons, companies feel the need to install
surveillance cameras that frame certain areas of the structure. The
purpose is to put in place a deterrent to prevent theft, violations and intrusions:
in a nutshell, video surveillance for security reasons.
It happens, then, that in some
cases the administrator or employer succumbs to the temptation to exploit
cameras in the workplace to secretly monitor their employees, perhaps to assess
their work productivity. However, many people do not know that using surveillance
cameras to monitor personnel goes against current regulations.
How, Then, Can A Holder Install A
Video Surveillance System In Total Respect For The Privacy Of His
Workers And Without Risking Incurring Charges And Penalties?
The procedure is quite simple and
it is undoubtedly worth pursuing it step by step rather than regretting not
having done it later. A company that wants to install surveillance cameras in
the workplace, before operating the plant, must:
- Inform the workers concerned by providing a privacy policy;
- Appoint a manager to manage the recorded data;
- Position the cameras in areas at risk, avoiding unidirectional resumption of workers;
Post visible signs informing
employees and any customers, guests or visitors of the presence of the video surveillance
cameras system in Chicago
- Store the images for a maximum time of 24-48 hours;
- Train video surveillance personnel;
- Prepare the minimum security measures;
Prepare suitable security
measures to guarantee access to images only to authorized personnel;
In the event that the video
cameras record one or more employees while they are working (the case in which
they are taken up while they are entering or leaving the workplace is excluded)
an agreement must be made with the company union representatives or, failing
that, with the IDOL (Provincial Labor Directorate) and obtain authorization to
install electronic remote control devices.
The Court of Cassation, with
sentence n. 4331, reiterated that the installation of security camera systems in Chicago,
on the workplace directed towards the place where its employees perform their
duties or on spaces where they have access even sporadically must be previously
authorized by the Inspectorate of Labor or must be authorized by a particular
agreement with the unions.
The lack of these premises entails
the criminal liability of the employer. The cameras can therefore be mounted
and installed only after receiving the authorization: the presence of the video
surveillance system, even if switched off, requires prior approval.
This rigid system was created to
protect the privacy of workers and to prevent their privacy violation. Failure
to comply with the procedures set out in the Code regarding the protection of
personal data, installing systems with unlawful purposes and processing the
data of one's employees in such a way as to violate their integrity and privacy
is risky and the penalties provided for may be particularly expensive. The
company's reputation would also be affected by a possible case of privacy
violation.
Jobs Act and Video Surveillance
Many, misinterpreting the text of
the law, think that the Jobs Act has eliminated this type of obligation. In
reality, the Jobs Act on the one hand emphasizes the importance of obtaining a
preventive trade union agreement in the event that "dangerous" control
instruments are used, on the other it adapts to the technological revolution
that has now become part of our lives on a daily basis, excluding devices such
as PCs, smart phones, tablets and entry and exit detectors from the list of
instruments that need agreement.
However, the Jobs Act confirms an
essential principle: the use of audiovisual equipment for the purpose of worker
control is NOT permitted. The remote control instruments in fact do not serve
to always have a third eye open on the employees, but they must have very
specific purposes, such as the protection of company assets, job security or
specific working needs.
Authorization to use surveillance
security camera in Chicago and
control devices must be provided by the unitary or company union
representatives. If the agreement with the latter cannot be reached, the law
provides that the territorial management of the work can intervene by issuing
the authorization directly. The tools that the employee needs instead to carry
out the working activity (smart phone, tablet,) are exempt from authorization
and can be installed without this type of procedure. The data collected on a
regular basis by means of remote control tools can be used for all purposes
related to the employment relationship and therefore also for disciplinary
purposes. It goes without saying that workers should be given complete
information about the existence of these tools and the way they are used.
Surveillance Cameras Everywhere?
Cameras cannot be installed in
any business environment. In several measures, the Guarantor has spoken out
against the use of video cameras in delicate environments such as changing
rooms, bathrooms or similar. For example, there are 105 thousand USD that those
who own a company in Pistoia will have to give to four ex-workers after spying
on them with a camera aimed at the toilets. The son of the owners of the
company, in fact, had installed a hidden camera in a loft, taking up the
toilets of the toilet, to control the 4 employees even in their most intimate
moments.
Fake Cameras?
There are also those who think
that, to avoid bureaucratic problems, it is possible to install simple fake cameras,
obtaining the effect of deterrence without having to follow any bureaucratic
process.
How often do we get into a store,
a parking lot, a shopping mall or a building and find a surveillance camera that
watches over us and monitors our movements? And on how many of these occasions
the video camera was a cleverly positioned toy with the sole purpose of
intimidating any bad guys?
In fact, it may seem like a cheap
and advantageous solution: I spend little on the toy camera, I don't need an
installer, I don't have to ask permission and authorization and I'm afraid
those who want to damage me before they even do it.
Actually that's not exactly how
it works. In fact, installing a fake video camera for the purpose of deterrence
is prohibited and has a series of contraindications that are often not
considered but which can backfire against the owner, despite the best
intentions.
But Why Can't You Use A Toy Camera To Intimidate Thieves?
Everything depends on the fact
that the law dedicated to video surveillance is based on four solid and
unyielding principles, which justify the use of staff and customer resumptions
where this is necessary and in compliance with particular conditions. We are
still talking about a situation on the borderline between protection of safety
and violation of privacy, whose boundaries are really very subtle and for which
it is necessary to find a balance that allows protecting things and people
without harming anyone's freedom.
The Principles Envisaged By The Provision Of April 29, 2004 Are:
Lawfulness that is the principle
on the basis of which the images collected can be used where necessary to meet
a legal obligation or to protect a legitimate interest;
Need, on the basis of which there
must be a sufficient and obvious reason that justifies the use of surveillance
cameras;
Proportionality, which guarantees
that the installation of the cameras takes place where it is deemed to be a
proportionate measure for the intended purposes;
Purpose, for which the aims
pursued by security video camera installation
must be determined, explicit and legitimate.
In short: the surveillance
cameras can be installed wherever it is necessary to increase the
security of a shop, office, building, courtyard, etc. and in the event that
employees, customers and passers-by are informed of their presence through
information and appropriate signage. The installation of fake video cameras, on
the other hand, does not respond to the principles mentioned above because if
it is fake then it means that the conditions for which video surveillance is
necessary for safety reasons are not present and, consequently, it is
superfluous and useless to install it.
Moreover, next to the fake
surveillance cameras, there would still be missing mandatory signage by law and
adding it would be declaring the forgery. If a crime occurred in the
hypothetical range of action of the camera, there would be no filming of the
event, creating several problems of concurrent responsibility.
Then I Put Hidden Cameras!
Another solution to which we tend
to think is to put hidden cameras (spy cameras) to surprise any incorrect
behavior of customers, employees or others.
If it is true that it is possible
to install
video cameras in a store with the aim of protecting their assets and personnel,
to avoid theft, robbery and any kind of attack, however it is not possible to
do it secretly, as many would like. The "surprise" camera is not
allowed, as is the fake one.
The sentence number 17440
clarifies that the image of an individual must be considered a personal datum. In
order to install a surveillance camera, as pointed out by the Privacy
Guarantor, it is necessary to notify the framed subjects, for example by
posting dedicated signs, so that all those whose images are collected are
informed and aware of them. The sentence came after the appeal presented by the
Privacy Authority following the cancellation of a sanction against the owner of
a roasting plant.
In this case, the owner had
installed a camera connected to a monitor in order to control who entered his
shop on the ground floor even while he was upstairs. However, the video camera
was not reported and this is precisely the mistake made by the shopkeeper. Even
if the camera does not record the images or if the quality of the images
collected does not allow immediate recognition of the faces, it does not
matter: we are talking about the treatment of a personal data .
In the specific case, the Court
emphasizes that where it is impossible to inform each person who enters the
beam framed by the camera orally, it is sufficient to use a sign , ie the
“minimum” information required. However, this sign cannot be hidden or
difficult to read: format and position must be visible and the contents
immediately understandable, which is why a symbol is effective (and does not
require translations!). In informing the resumed customer it is also necessary
to explain whether it is a recording of the images collected or whether they
are only viewed.
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