NAIROBI, Kenya- The recent online controversy over a Russian man luring women into his apartments, secretly recording them, and sharing clips for profit raises serious questions about privacy, consent, and legality.
Reports suggest the recordings were posted on a subscription platform where users pay to access videos or snippets, intensifying public concern over exploitation without consent.
Russian Man’s Secret Recording of Kenyan Women Sparks Outrage Across Social Media ynews.digital/headline-1/rus…
How People Can Be Secretly Recorded
Modern technology makes covert recording easier than ever, not just with phones, but also with wearable devices and hidden gadgets:
• Smart glasses and wearables — Some eyewear products like smart glasses have built-in cameras that can capture video discreetly.
These devices are designed for convenience, but they can also be misused to record others without their knowledge.
In recent incidents globally, users of such glasses have been accused of recording strangers in public and sharing the footage online without consent, prompting privacy debates.
• Concealed cameras and hidden devices, Small cameras, the size of buttons, pens, or USB sticks — can be placed in private spaces to record video or audio without detection. Without clear indicators or notification, victims have no way of knowing they’re being filmed.
• Smartphones used covertly — Even a regular smartphone can be used to record covertly if placed out of sight or disguised.
In private settings, people may let their guard down, believing they are not being recorded.
Signs You May Be Being Recorded Secretly
While there’s no guaranteed way to detect all secret recordings, some indicators include:
- Odd behaviour or persistent filming when someone seems to point a device at you under the guise of recording something else.
- Unusual devices in private spaces, such as glasses with tiny lenses, unfamiliar gadgets, or objects that look out of place.
- Unexpected notifications or content online — Many victims only discover recordings after videos surface on social media or paid platforms.
Being aware of surroundings and asking someone directly if they are recording can help, but in many cases, the person recording may hide their intent.
What Kenyan Law Says About Recording and Privacy
In Kenya, privacy is protected under the Constitution and various statutory laws:
• Right to Privacy — Constitution
Article 31 of the Constitution protects every person’s right not to have their private affairs unnecessarily revealed or communications infringed.
Secret recordings without consent, especially in private settings, can violate this right.
• Data Protection Act (2019)
The Act governs how personal data — including identifiable images and videos — should be collected, stored and shared.
Recording someone without their consent, and then disseminating that footage, can be unlawful.
Owners of CCTV and recording devices must inform subjects and respect privacy boundaries; covert recording of private areas is prohibited.
• Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act (2018)
This law criminalises several digital offences that may apply to secret recordings shared online:
- Unauthorised interception or interference with data, including videos recorded without consent, can attract fines or imprisonment.
- Wrongful distribution of intimate or obscene images — sharing, publishing, or disseminating another person’s intimate images without permission is an offence, punishable by fines and/or imprisonment.
- Other provisions criminalise the use of devices to commit cyber offences and the impactful misuse of digital data.
- These laws mean individuals who record and share intimate content without consent may face civil and criminal consequences.
Consent Is Critical — Ethically and Legally
Consent to interact with someone socially, or even sexually, does not mean consent to be recorded or have those recordings shared.
Kenyan law and constitutional rights emphasise the protection of personal data and privacy.
Secretly recording someone in private spaces, then distributing that material, can amount to cybercrime, invasion of privacy, and exploitation.
Victims of non-consensual recording and distribution can seek redress through:
- Reporting to the Office of the Data Protection Commissioner
- Filing a police report
- Pursuing civil suits for invasion of privacy and emotional distress
The explosion of wearable recording tech like smart glasses has outpaced laws in many countries, but the core legal principles on privacy, consent, and data protection remain applicable and enforceable in Kenya.
