A man sat alone in his own flat — he didn’t know 10 million people were watching

The thought of being spied on by a neighbour has sparked outrage (Picture: Getty Images) On Friday night, a man sat alone in his Brooklyn apartment on a stool, seemingly staring at nothing. At the same time, a stranger stood with their phone filming his every move. Without his knowledge, the footage was posted to TikTok and not 48 hours later more than 10 million people had watched him. John, who posted the clip of the stranger, said: ‘I looked out the window and see this man sitting completely still staring at the wall… I know I should mind my business but unfortunately this is my business now.’ But instead of the unknown man in the video becoming a laughing stock, as was perhaps intended, the viral clip sparked uproar with many believing it was a gross invasion of privacy. ‘The thought of someone watching and recording me in my home is horrifying,’ commented one. ‘This is the highest form of invasion of privacy,’ said another. ‘Can’t even disassociate in your home,’ someone else complained. One Tiktoker, Taylor Pare, dubbed it a ‘disgusting interaction’, adding: ‘We are now in a surveillance state… It used to be we were scared to walk down the street, fearing we were in the back of someone’s TikTok, but now the safety of our own homes is up for grabs. ‘Privacy is not a given, but something we must prepare for in order to achieve.’ Others felt the video amounted to voyeurism and branded it ‘scary, predatory behaviour’. Surveillance capitalism Ask Metro Use AI to go deeper into the stories you care about – powered by Metro and trusted publications. The viral video is indicative of what sociologist Shoshana Zuboff termed ‘surveillance capitalism’. She believes it ‘unilaterally claims human experience as free raw material’ for others to use, and suggests that digital connection is now used for others’ commercial ends. Simply put, she writes: ‘At its core, surveillance capitalism is parasitic and feeds on every aspect of every human’s experience.’ But, Nottingham Trent University professor Jens Binder, who specialises in cyberpsychology, tells Metro that the viral nature of this video is actually a good thing. ‘You can say this video is something deplorable and negative, or you could say the clear verdict people have delivered is positive because it shows people still care,’ he explains. As for why the backlash to this single video was so pronounced, professor Binder says it acts as a ‘focusing lens’ for all the fears we have about being surveilled, given the rise of tech like Meta glasses which nine in 10 Brits feel is a privacy risk. ‘It’s an example that feels close to home,’ he adds. ‘It becomes very easy to imagine yourself as the one being surveyed or secretly filmed.’ The professor points out that we’ve adjusted to the idea of being filmed as soon as we step out of our front door, expecting CCTV to be on street corners. ‘It’s all about the canvas you see yourself on,’ the cyberpsychologist says. ‘Take CCTV footage of someone in a shopping centre walking into a fountain. A lot of people will watch it, laugh and be done with it because it has a clear purpose – to entertain. ‘This TikTok is ambiguous, it’s not clear what it wants, which can trigger an intense negative response.’ Being spied on by a neighbour feels worse Of course, you could argue that, if we have a problem with this type of TikTok filming, we should have a problem with being filmed unknowingly by any person, company or organisation. But, professor Binder says that we have different expectations of a company or organisation, versus our neighbour. ‘When we’re looking at surveillance monitoring, company responsibility and roles that governments play, we feel that those organisations that are above us are more powerful than others and show greater responsibility, because they have greater data access and could do much more targeted things,’ he explains. This is vastly different to the paranoia that comes with being filmed by someone just like you, and not knowing what they’re capable of. And, for those of us watching this video, the expert suggests that in some cases, we could develop ‘cyber paranoia’, where we become apprehensive about everything that’s online or being filmed. While the internet found this TikTok morally repugnant, knowing there’s little we could do about it, perhaps makes it worse. Filming someone without their consent in the UK isn’t necessarily a criminal offence, as we don’t require two-party consent. People were outraged because it could’ve easily been them (Picture: Getty Images) ‘It’s not necessarily illegal to film someone in their home without their knowledge,’ Rebecca Smart, a criminal lawyer for Payne Hicks Beach, tells Metro. ‘Whether a criminal offence has been committed depends on the circumstances, including what was recorded, why it was recorded, and what was then done with the footage. ‘The law provides greater protection where someone is carrying out a private act, but filming and sharing footage of a person inside their home can also potentially form part of offences such as harassment or stalking if it is intended to cause alarm or distress.’ So, while it may be bleak, it’s likely this unnamed man’s film will circulate on the internet forever. Do you have a story you’d like to share? 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