EUROPEAN UNION · PRIVACY · BG
Bulgaria
Hidden camera in Bulgaria: emergency 112, local police, data protection authority and sourced legal guidance for a safe report.
Official contacts
Police · reporting and complaints
For a credible concern about intimate recording, stalking or threats, contact police where the incident occurred. The official site below directs you to their contacts and procedures. Online forms may be restricted to certain incidents and may not replace a complaint in person. Reporting to a host or platform is not a police complaint.
Ministry of Interior
Official websiteData protection · information and complaints
For questions about the use of images or a complaint within data protection law, consult the authority below. It does not replace emergency services or criminal investigation; its remit depends on the processing concerned.
Commission for Personal Data Protection (CPDP)
Official websiteNational rules to consult
This guidance reflects available official rules and recommendations, not a complete list of criminal offences or penalties. Disclosed security cameras and covert intimate recording are not equivalent. Sources may be in the country’s language.
CPDP publishes Bulgaria’s Personal Data Protection Act, which supplements GDPR in matters it does not cover. The European rules on scope, lawful basis and information are presented separately below.
CPDP — Bulgarian Personal Data Protection ActThe published English translation lists amendments through State Gazette No 70 of 20 August 2024; completeness beyond that has not been confirmed here. For a hidden-camera case, ask the authority and police which current provisions apply, without inferring an offence from the object alone.
CPDP — Bulgarian Personal Data Protection Act
The European framework: GDPR, where applicable
Purpose and lawful basis
Recording identifiable people may constitute personal-data processing. Where GDPR applies, this must comply with the principles in Article 5 and a lawful basis under Article 6. Consent is not the only possible basis.
Information and proportionality
Where GDPR applies, Article 5 requires data minimisation and storage limitation, among other principles. Article 13 specifies information to provide when data are collected from the person. A sign does not automatically legitimise filming bedrooms, showers or toilets.
National law still matters
Article 2 includes an exemption for certain purely personal or household activities. It does not authorise all surveillance: national privacy, image or criminal laws may still apply even where GDPR does not.
Neither GDPR nor this guide can establish an offence from a reflection or a box alone. Airbnb rules are platform policies, separate from national laws and other hotels’ rules.
If you discover something suspicious
Get to safety
Stop using the intimate space and move somewhere safe. Do not confront anyone if it puts you at risk. For immediate threats, call emergency services.
Document only where safe
Note the position, date and observed facts. Keep bookings and messages. Do not dismantle the object or access its memory; never photograph nudity or occupied cubicles.
Ask for appropriate examination
Ask police how to preserve the device and report what happened. From a safe place, also contact the official booking channel or property. Keep evidence private and avoid public accusations.
Editorial check on 29 October 2026 · verification limits noted in the guides
The English law translation was readable, but CPDP’s website presented a certificate problem and the ministry blocked automated access. Normal access to these contacts and completeness of legal amendments after August 2024 are not confirmed.
An editorial summary from LYNX Scan, a detector seller; not legal advice or a single official protocol. Rules may change. No complaint outcome, refund or detector result is guaranteed. Ask the local authority or a lawyer about your situation.
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