Hidden Cameras. Journalists have the right to use hidden cameras to complete an investigation. A criminal conviction imposed solely because a camera was used covertly can also interfere with a reporter’s freedom of expression. In February 2015, the European Court of Human Rights backed four Swiss journalists who had produced an investigation into insurance brokers.
They had gathered complaints from customers who believed they were not being given all the information they needed when taking out life insurance policies. The industry regulator had also flagged concerns. One of the journalists then posed as a customer and met a broker. Their conversation was secretly recorded and later broadcast on the SF DRS programme Kassensturz (“Cash Check”).
A Swiss criminal court convicted the journalists, although the penalties were symbolic fines. The judge said they had breached a rule banning the publication of a conversation that one of the participants expected to remain private.
The court also argued that the reporters could have obtained the same information by lawful means. It added that a single interview with one broker was not enough to demonstrate improper conduct across the whole profession.
The journalists appealed to the European Court of Human Rights, which ruled in their favour.
The court said the reporters had acted in the public interest and that the information they gathered — even by unusual means — proved to be accurate.
The judges also noted the precautions taken by the journalists:
- the broker’s face was blurred before transmission
- his voice was altered so he could not be recognised
- the recording was made away from his office to reduce the risk of identification
- he was told he had been recorded and was offered a chance to respond.
The court said a criminal conviction could deter other journalists from investigating issues of serious public concern.
One judge, dissenting, voted against the journalists. He said the Swiss criminal code applies to everyone and makes no exception for reporters. In his view, making a private conversation public is an offence that should be punished — whoever commits it.
