A quick check of an Airbnb, holiday let or hotel room for hidden cameras, using only your phone and a light. It takes about 15 minutes for a small apartment and covers what to do if you find something.
Why bother
Airbnb has banned almost all indoor security cameras since 30 April 2024, even ones that are switched off or disclosed (the exceptions: a narrow entryway camera in Japan, and lobbies and hallways in hotel listings), and hidden cameras were never allowed. A ban only works when someone notices a breach, though. Small cameras are sold built into smoke alarms, clocks, USB chargers and picture frames, and they usually give themselves away in one of three ways: the lens reflects light, infrared night-vision LEDs glow on a phone camera, or the device shows up on the Wi-Fi or Bluetooth. A short check before you unpack covers all three, and it means you can report a problem while you can still prove it and move.
Before you start
- Time needed: 10 to 20 minutes, longer for a large house.
- What you need: a smartphone with a working front camera, its torch (or a separate flashlight), and the property's Wi-Fi password. A TV remote helps for one test.
- Checked on: menu paths follow Apple, Google, Samsung and Airbnb support pages as of October 2026, plus the free Fing app. Names can differ on older versions and other phone brands.
- Nothing on your phone is changed or lost. You are only looking, not changing settings.
Steps
1 Read what the host has disclosed
Before you arrive, open the listing in the Airbnb app and scroll down to the section about safety and the property, usually near the house rules at the bottom of the listing (the heading wording varies between app versions and regions). Look for mentions of an exterior camera, a doorbell camera or a noise monitor.
Under Airbnb's rules, outdoor and doorbell cameras are allowed if they are disclosed with their general location, and noise decibel monitors are allowed in common areas if disclosed. They must not be in bedrooms, bathrooms or sleeping areas. Indoor security cameras are banned (with a narrow Japan entryway exception and hotel common areas); smart speakers are allowed and hosts don't have to disclose them.
You should now know which devices are expected, so you do not mistake a disclosed doorbell camera for a hidden one. Take a screenshot of the disclosure in case the listing changes later.
2 Walk the rooms and look at the usual hiding places
Start with the rooms where you undress and sleep: bedroom, then bathroom, then living areas. Stand where the bed and shower are and look outward; a camera has to point at you to be useful, so check anything with a clear view of those spots.
Look closely at:
- Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, especially a second one in a room that already has one, or one on a wall facing the bed.
- Clocks, radios and speakers, particularly when they face the bed or shower.
- USB chargers, plug adapters and power strips that are already plugged in.
- Picture frames, books, plants, tissue boxes, air purifiers and soft toys.
- TV boxes, routers and anything with a small hole on its front face.
- Mirrors in the bathroom and bedroom. Press a fingertip to the glass: no gap between nail and reflection can mean a two-way mirror (not foolproof). Then, lights off, shine your torch against it; a space behind it is suspect.
What you are looking for is a tiny dark hole (often 1 to 3 mm), a device that seems out of place, a cable running to something that should not need power, or a charger that is warm with nothing plugged into it. You should end this step with a short list of objects worth a closer look.