Pornographers beware - new legislation coming into law in the US will soon make the practise of covertly taping people "for lascivious purposes" illegal. Described as "video voyeurism", the practise has become the "new frontier of stalking". After the bill has passed, doing so would lead to a fine of $100,000 and imprisonment of up to one year.
The miniaturization of cameras and the low cost of products have made it easy for people to do this covertly. Rep. James Sensenbrenner described the problem as "a huge privacy concern". The camera made notorious by many a internet ad, the X10, is one of many devices causing the problem, along side the growing spread of camera phones.
The bill would make illegal to "videotape or photograph the naked or underwear-covered private parts of a person without consent when the person has a reasonable expectation of privacy".