Security Camera Help

Where the hell do you work?

a hospital

ouch.

I don't know much about the tech side of it - but I do know you can find them on the web, though they're rarely cheap (At least a decent one isn't). But it sounds like what you'll really need is to be able to record - and that's where things get dicey. Somehow you need to find out if recording your own desk is going to get you into trouble, especially as HIPPA could be used against you depending on the nature of your job. You could find yourself in a world of legal trouble over trying to protect your stuff. I doubt that your employee's handbook willl cover this - though you may be surprised.
Might be better to either see if maintanance can lock your desk or have some sort of locking cabinet setup. That's what we do, because housekeeping (and anyone else who wants to) comes in and seems to think that anything we have laying around is fair game. Which is usually food in our case - our snacks disappear at an alarming rate! Even a small lockbox might be a better investment, though it's sad that we've come to a point where any of these steps are necessary.

We're not medical workers. We install/fix the computers. We have no reason to be looking through patient information, so recording ourselves shouldn't be an issue with HIPAA/JCAHO. Another ridiculous thing is that they moved us into that office to bulldoze our old area for renovations. Our old offices had built-in locking cubicle cabinets and shelves. Our current area has wooden shelves and no cabinets. The only locks that came with the place are on the doors.

I've seen a few hidden camera styles that I like - smoke detectors, fake motion detectors, exit signs, screws, clocks... the problem is that the ones that seem like they'd fit my needs lead to video feeds for standard TV equipment and I'm not sure my 2nd work PC has TV inputs (will have to check on Monday).

If there is any meidcal information on the computers you install/fix, and the screen is visible on the camera, then technically you are copying medical information onto portable media, which is bad.

I don't know the specifics regarding the law as I am not the security officer at our place, but I do know we got permission from the CEO to install cameras in our IT Room. They are not hidden, and have no sound (recording sound apparently was an issue, as well as recording anyone's actual work area). I ended up placing them facing the two doors that enter into our part of the building. A very limited amount of people have access to our area (although building maintenance does have access), so it helps if any unauthorized people come into our room. Will it catch someone stealing something small and putting it on their pocket? No, but I still think the idea of having your entry and exit recorded along with the time is a pretty good deterrent. We had some software disappear prior to putting the cameras, but have had no theft since. As for personal items, I lock my desk and my office at night.

Yeah I would think HIPPA would prevent you from putting up any unofficially authorized security cameras.

The room where I typically work on PCs that've been in use isn't in view of where I'm interested in watching, and my screens never have patient info on them because I have no reason to view it. All I access on my computers is IS and personal stuff.

You have authority from your boss to do it?

That's never been a problem with our department. Our management rarely spends money on theft prevention, despite personal cameras throughout our and other IS departments catching housekeeping redhanded. It's really annoying that they seem to think security is our problem, not the institution's. The only official camera we've ever had that was supposed to be for inventory security was aimed at three of my coworkers' desks... not even pointed at the inventory or the two entrances to the storage area. This place is full of shit.

well, legally no. You can't just go in and place cameras in a place of business. This seen as violating ones 4th Amendment rights to privacy which is a felony offense in many states. You would first have to obtain legal permission prior to any installation.

Wwithout legal permission to install the cameras, any findings from the surveillance tapes would be useless in a court of law. Not to mention that since this is not property/business you own you could be held charged with tresspassing.

Best bet would be to contaclt legal office that can help you with the laws in your area, talk to the person in charge of the business and ask them or invest in combo locks. =/

That's actually something I've been trying to talk to HR about. Our boss had that other camera installed without telling anyone he was watching them, and feigned ignorance when he was called on it. "What camera? Where would this 'camera' be?" When that camera was purchased, we were told we were getting one to point at our inventory cage. Then it disappeared until people forgot about it, quietly reappearing in position to spy on two new women and a man our boss despises.

I'm left with little choice here. We've mentioned this in meetings, even with our director present. They don't care. They think we're paranoid. It doesn't matter that people have had their desks ransacked, losing money in the process. Those Ray-Bans I lost wouldn't even have been in my office if my boss wasn't such a fucking asshole. He refused to let me wear them, despite the fact that I frequently have issues with bright light (and I support areas with bright light - OR, ER, labs). He claimed that people were complaining... never mind that managers and directors around the hospital told me it was completely acceptable, and not even out of place in a hospital due to the number of people with dilated pupils in a medical environment. He said it made me unapproachable by patients. That's bullshit. My bloodshot eyes are scarier than my sunglass-hidden eyes, for one. I'm also not someone patients would need to talk to, which is obvious by the fact that I don't wear scrubs or a lab coat and don't sit at a desk where patients are authorized to walk. Despite all that, patients have never had a problem talking to me in sunglasses... or any of the dozens of people who walk around with them that don't get chastised by their bosses. I left my sunglasses on my desk, came back, and they were gone.

The combination lock is something we've been trying to get for months. We've had keypad locks elsewhere, but our boss has refused to do anything about the fact that our room is accessible by housekeeping's master key. They also have no business being in there after hours. They can empty our trash when we're there. We're not making messes when we're gone, so we have never been able to figure out why they come in to empty our already-empty cans after 6pm.

We've had cameras in several other IS departments here that caught housekeeping redhanded. We know the cops won't use that evidence, since they pretty much ignored it last time. However, they were fine with the fact that we had private cameras up in the first place. At the very least, we'd like to know who to be wary of.

Right now I'm considering using a top-down camera to focus on my closed-off area. No one could say I was watching other people's areas. No one's supposed to be in my area, but I find work-related CDs missing all the time and have to bug our image/package control guys for new copies. My boss also claims I'm never there, despite the fact that I work longer hours than he does. I'd love to see him try and say that when I have proof that I show up on time and leave 2-3 hours late.

Dude all I can suggest is to find another job... if things progess to the point you need a camera like that IMO it's time to look for someplace that *will* care when people are caught red handed stealing and will listen to employee complaints.

Your best bet is to take your shit home and leave nothing personal at your work. So what if you keep having to bug IT - that's on your workplace, not you.

Guess it's all a moot point now. Got fired yesterday after 9 1/2 years. Boss said I don't work, regardless of the numerous departments throughout the hospital who tell me I'm the only tech who gets their problems fixed consistently. Boss says I've got a bad attitude, regardless of the numerous departments (and pretty much every individual) saying I'm practically the only one who is always polite. I never hear much except complaining from my coworkers about the users and even about the boss himself for his fucked up decisions and playing favorites (even from his favorites). Boss tells me I'm never there on time, despite the fact that I'm often there before the workers he claims are there on time (they eat for about an hour before doing anything also) that leave 15-30 minutes early. Hell, I'm frequently there before he is and leave after he does almost every day.

Anyway, it's total BS and I intend to go to HR on Monday to fight it. One of my friends also got fired about 5 minutes after I did for similar reasons even though he's always doing exactly what the boss tells him to do.

Man, I'm sorry to hear that :(. Good luck fighting the man!

What a fucktard :( Sorry to hear that . Best wishes with whatever you decide