A tiny surf camera at one of Australia's most popular beaches has sparked privacy concerns
Around Australia's coastline, cameras provide live broadcasts of surfing conditions. But they're not always welcome. A recently installed camera at bells beach on Victoria's surf coast is dividing the local community, prompting university researchers to get involved.
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00:00 It's a stationary camera causing a stir.
00:05 For surfers it can be a great way to check conditions before hitting the waves.
00:10 Bring it on, bring on the cameras.
00:12 For others it's an intrusion.
00:14 A lot of people consider bells to be sacrosanct, you just don't touch it.
00:19 We've had numerous campaigns in the past where various bodies have tried to commercialise bells.
00:27 The subscriber only camera is attached to a house on private property about a kilometre from the beach,
00:33 broadcasting the Winky Pop Surf Break at the Bells Beach Reserve.
00:38 But a petition with more than two and a half thousand signatures is calling for the camera to be removed,
00:45 arguing there should be no filming public activity for private gain.
00:49 There's been no consultation about this surf cam before it came in.
00:54 Darren Noyce-Brown also fears the camera will encourage more people to surf at the iconic break
01:01 and lead to Bells Beach becoming overcrowded.
01:04 The debate has gained so much attention.
01:07 Researchers at Deakin University published a report about the camera's impacts on privacy.
01:13 The jurisdictional issues and complexities is really what drew us to studying this camera.
01:20 Across the world there's a history of surf cameras at some local breaks being vandalised and eventually taken down entirely.
01:28 But with the population of Victoria's surf coast growing rapidly and local breaks here becoming not so local,
01:35 some argue the anger over this surf camera is overblown.
01:39 So if it's a privacy issue or a surveillance issue, it's absolute rubbish
01:46 because they're little black ants in the distance at Winky Pop.
01:50 Swellnet, the company that installed the controversial camera,
01:54 says similar devices are operating at a number of well-known surfing reserves,
01:59 including Margaret River, Noosa and Bondi Beach.
02:03 An argument that will keep the wave of debates going for some time.
02:08 [BLANK_AUDIO]