Laws on
Video Recording Someone
Let's look at some of the laws on video recording someone for a mystery shop assignment.
Video mystery shopping is a legitimate business where the mystery shopper will enter a place of business with hidden camera gear and a microphone to evaluate people on the job. Business owners and their managers want to see how a person presents their product with video that can be played back to the employee. It's a great way to properly train a person and correct or praise any of the dialogue used. I've heard that managers will give salary increases with a string of good reports. I also heard that too many poor performances can result in termination.
I've been doing video mystery shopping since 2006, and I've never had any legal issues about recording someone. I've caught some employees playing video games on their phone or smoking in an area where they're not supposed to. These assignments evaluate the good and bad things that occur during my visit. Many want video of cleanliness as well.
The mystery shopping companies I work with are legitimate. I've been paid for every assignment that I have completed correctly. There were a few assignments where I had equipment issues that prevented me from getting paid (this will happen to everyone now and then).
In a one-party state, only one person involved in a conversation needs to know that video and audio is being recorded. That person is obviously you. If you have a problem with that, you shouldn't be a video mystery shopper.
It's the two-party state that takes a little more detail to iron out. It's also considered to be "all parties" need to know about the recording. How can this work if you're a mystery shopper and you don't want the other party to know you're recording?
The companies I work with take the approach that every state is a two-party state. The companies assured me that the people I will video shop have all signed a release form indicating that mystery shoppers will be visiting, but you won't know who they are. The majority of the assignments I do is evaluating a sales presentation for new home builders, apartments, car dealerships, restaurants, and many other businesses.
There are about a dozen states that have a two-party requirement to video record someone. Two of those states are California and Pennsylvania. Both states have plenty of video assignments to choose from.
Along with local laws on video recording someone, international laws come into play for assignments across the border. If you have an assignment in a foreign country, you'll want to check the laws to make sure everything is legitimate. The laws vary greatly from country to country.
If you do any video mystery shops in France or Germany, you'll have to make sure with local authorities about what you can and cannot do. These countries in particular have stringent privacy laws. You must have the proper consent to video record someone. There are some countries that don't allow hidden video recording of a person at all.
If a legitimate mystery shopping company has a video shop available for someone to pick up, it's likely they dotted all the i's and crossed all the t's. They wouldn't assign a job that would hinge on something unscrupulous. But, you always want to be sure to follow the laws on video recording someone.
Video mystery shopping is where I have found quite a few people making good money. Many work this business full-time with no other income. People who've been doing this business for a while will find a lot of opportunities come their way. Plus, mystery shopping companies will contact the veterans who've done great work in the past.
Laws on video recording someone document.
I had a video mystery shopping assignment at a local gym. Many of these shops use a button camera on a shirt or a pen in pocket. The assignment required that I had to record the presentation at the beginning, then go to the locker room to change into some workout clothes. Before I entered the locker room, I had to discreetly turn off my equipment. I was instructed not to wear the hidden camera gear during the workout. After the workout, I put my button camera back on and discreetly started recording after leaving the locker room.
The client and mystery shopping companies do not want any violation of privacy concerns when it comes to entering a locker room with hidden video equipment. It's highly restricted and is generally illegal. The client is only interested in the presentation in the beginning and how they close the prospect.
The mystery shopping business is always looking for new faces to visit different places. Learn how you can start your own mystery shopping business from my book, "Take That Job And Mystery Shop It!." I also list close to 200 mystery shopping companies that you can click on their website and fill out an application. There's information about each company and I indicate which ones I've worked with.
