Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bill No. 8838

Introduced by Honorable Sherwin T. Gatchalian

Explanatory Note

The spate of violent crimes continue to proliferate not only in the
densely populated Metropolitan Manila area but also occurs even in
remote rural communities throughout the country. Although the Closed
Circuit Television Video (CCTV) has been invented in 1942 to observe the
launch of the German V-2 rockets, it became only widely used by New
York City policemen in 1968 for crime prevention. Nowadays, the use of
CCTV has become increasingly real and normal. An Ordinance by the
City Council of Quezon City has remarkably been passed to oblige
owners of commercial establishments to install CCTV cameras to aid in
crime prevention. Several lawmakers have likewise filed similar
legislations, acknowledging the usefulness of the CCTV and requiring its
utilization by local businesses to deter crime.

In the most recent controversial case involving, actor-television-
host, Ferdinand “Vhong” Navarro, the advantage of the presence of a
CCTV in the premises has already unraveled the missing pieces of the
story to the investigators or at least corroborated the allegations of one
party as to the true events of the night.

However, its unbridled use despite the benefits it has
demonstrated, has raised serious and valid concerns on its undue
intrusion to privacy. In the words of an Information Commissioner, we
agree with his observation that “while the use of the CCTV continues to
enjoy general public support, it necessarily involves intrusion into the lives
of ordinary individuals as they go about their day to day business.
Research has shown that the public expect it to be used responsibly with
effective safeguards in place. Maintaining public trust and confidence in its
use is essential if its benefits are to be realized and its use is not to be
viewed with suspicion as part of a surveillance society’.


Hence, this proposed legislation envisioned to impose the
parameters/ provide the guidelines in CCTV installation and access to its
recordings to help ensure practice standards that are responsible and
necessary and foster confidence in the use of the system.

In view of the foregoing, the enactment of this bill is earnestly
recommended.

G

$ . lian
Representative, | trict, Valenzuela City


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SIXTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bill No.__3838

Introduced by Honorable Sherwin T. Gatchalian

AN ACT
TO PROVIDE GUIDELINES FOR THE INSTALLATION OF THE
CLOSED CIRCUIT TELEVISION VIDEO (CCTV) AND THE PROCEDURE
FOR ACCESS TO THE IMAGES

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines
in Congress assembled:

Section 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “CCTV
Act of 2014”.

Section 2. Declaration of Policy.- It is hereby the declared policy
of the State (a) to maintain peace and order, protect life, liberty and
property and to promote general welfare; and (b) value the dignity of
every Filipino and guarantee full respect for human rights.

Section 3. Objective of this Act. ~ It is the objective of this Act to
provide the guidelines for the installation, use and utilization of the
Closed Circuit Television Videos (CCTV) in public, private and residential
establishments with due regard to the privacy and civil rights of every
individual by maintaining peace and order in the communities,
promoting crime prevention and upholding public safety.

Section 4. Definition of Terms. For the purpose of this Act, the
following terms shall be defined as follows:

1. CCTV - Shall refer to the use of video cameras to transmit a
signal to a specific place, on a set of monitors/a television
system that transmits images on a “closed loop” basis, where
images are only available to those directly connected with to the
transmission system;


2. Video Surveillance - Shall refer to a closed circuit television
system for direct visual monitoring and/or recording of
activities on the premises or in a specific place;

3. Private Installations ~ shall refer to CCTV Cameras installed in
private establishments such as but not limited to private
subdivisions, condominiums and other residential areas,
business hubs, malls and shopping centers;

4. Public Installations ~ shall refer to CCTV Cameras installed in
public places such as but not limited to government offices and
instrumentalities, parks, streets and highways including public
markets, airports and public transport terminals;

5, Images ~ Shall refer to recorded images in the CCTV Cameras;
and

6. Persons in Authority - Shall refer to elements of the Philippine
National Police, Barangay Chairman and the Barangay Tanods.

Section 5. Functions of CCTV. - The installation of CCTVs in
both private and public establishments shall have the following
functions:

1. Crime Prevention ~ the CCTV shall function as a tool of law
enforcement and crime prevention by way of effective
monitoring of public places, such as pathways and streets,
parks and other areas;

2. Traffic Monitoring - the CCTV shall enable the viewing of a
wider range of data images on motorists, pedestrians and
critical thoroughfares, to provide quicker apprehension of road
safety violators and pinpoint causes of traffic build-up;

3. Surveillance — the CCTV shall function as a surveillance tool
that will allow security agencies to monitor private
establishments and ensure the safety and security of
individuals and the protection of private properties from theft
and robbery;

4. Household Affairs - the CCTV shall function to monitor
households by way of monitoring health, security and safety of
household members, unauthorized access to household
premises and general conduct of household affairs;


5. Monitor Employees — the CCTV shall function as a tool to
monitor the general administrative conduct of employees to aid
in the review of employee workmanship and performance; and

6. Documentation - the CCTV shall function as a tool to monitor
the progress or development of data; or the sequences of events
in a facility or institution.

‘The data to be collected shall be relevant, adequate and not
excessive for the purposes for which they are obtained.

Section 6. Guiding Principles. — This Act shall have the
following guiding principles:

1, The CCTV shall at all times be operated with respect to people’s
privacy and their right to conduct or engage in lawful activities;

2. The owner/operator of the CCTV shall be publicly known to
ensure appropriate accountability and shall be appropriately
registered before the Philippine National Police;

3. Signage informing the public of the existence of CCTV cameras
shall be erected. It shall be visible, distinctive and located in
areas with good lighting;

4. The premise for use of CCTV as crime deterrent shall mobilize a
quick and adequate response unit from the persons of authority
such as but not limited to the local police force or barangay
watchmen on reported incidents;

5. Persons of Authority shall develop a system for addressing
complaints to receive and investigate complaints about alleged
violations of privacy;

6. A recorded material shall not be released to the media except
only to acquire relevant information on the identity and
whereabouts of an individual wanted for a criminal offense, and
provide the general public information of critical concern in the
community. In such cases, the recognizable characteristics of
other people in the footage shall be obscured; and

7. Tapes or still photographs shall be disposed of in a manner
which does not allow the reproduction of any of the recorded
material.


Section 7. Prohibited Acts and Recordings. - It shall be unlawful
for any person or establishment to perform the following acts:

1. Install or use the CCTV on someone else’s property;

2. Install or use the CCTV cameras in any restroom, toilet,
bathroom, changing room and other similar areas utilized for
private activities;

3. Use CCTV with a device to overhear events, conversations or
sounds without the permission of the people involved shall not
be allowed;

4. Install CCTV’s in public places without the display of due notice
on the walls or at the entrance of the establishment;

5. Install a CCTV in the external part of one’s residential or private
property that encroaches on the private property of another or
of a neighbor;

6. Install CCTV to monitor the conduct or performance in a
workplace without due notice to all employees;

7. Install and use CCTV as surveillance tool of particular
individuals on behalf of 34 parties or paying clients, covered by
a contract of engagement more than the duration specified by
the Philippine National Police;

8. Install and use CCTV inside a residence to manage one’s family
without notice given to the staff and members of the household;

9. To sell or publish any recorded material or still photographs for
commercial purposes; and

10. To upload any image, recording or stills from the CCTV on the
internet for entertainment purposes.

Section 8. Procedure for Access and Disclosure of
Recordings,- Only authorized persons shall have access to images
and recordings from CCTV’s. Viewing of the images and recordings
shall take place in a restricted area or in private conditions. All
access allowed or granted under the circumstances must be
documented and for limited or prescribed circumstances only.


The use, viewing, copying or disclosure of images and
recordings performed in accordance with this Act shall only be
allowed in the following instances:

1. Upon a written request from a person in authority in connection
with and limited to an investigation for the prosecution of an
offense punishable by law;

2. Upon lawful order of the court, in connection with a pending
criminal or civil proceeding;

3. To determine whether an offense has been committed against a
person or property and to ascertain the identity of the
perpetrator and the manner by which the crime was committed;

4. Any person whose image has been recorded may make an
application in writing for a copy of the recording or its still
images;

5. Upon compliance with the Rules of Procedure set by security
agencies operating under the management of clients.

6. Law Enforcement Agencies shall not be allowed to release
images or recordings from the CCTV to the media, except only
when the circumstances warrant to help identify the perpetrator
of a crime or locate his whereabouts, or as a matter of public
information.

The use, copying or disclosure of images and recordings shall be
authorized within twenty-four (24) hours after submission of the
request, as herein specified.

Section 9. - Retention, Storage and Preservation. - Unless
otherwise reserved for a specific purpose to review the events of a crime
or that the information needs to be studied further for any number of
reasons, data of recordings shall not be kept for more than 30 days and
should be automatically overwritten or deleted beyond said period.

Section 10. - Penalties. - Any act or omission by the owner
and/or operator of the CCTV in violation of the provisions of this Act
shall be punishable with an imprisonment of not less than six (6) months
but not exceeding six (6) years, or a fine not less than Ten thousand
pesos (Ph10,000.00) but not more than One Hundred Thousand Pesos
(Php(100,000.00) or both such fine and imprisonment at the discretion of
the court.


Section 11. Implementing Rules and Regulations. —- The
Director General of Philippine National Police in close coordination with
the Secretary Department of Interior and Local Government, the
Secretary of National Defense, the Secretary of Transportation and
Communications, the Secretary of Justice, the National Security Adviser,
and the Director of National Bureau of Investigation shall issue the
necessary rules and regulations for the effective implementation of this
Act.

Section 12. Repealing Clause. - All laws, presidential decrees,
executive orders, rules and regulations or part thereof, contrary to or
inconsistent with the provisions of this Act, are hereby repealed or
modified accordingly.

Section 13, Separability Clause. ~ If any section or provision of
this Act is held unconstitutional or invalid, all other sections or
provisions shall remain in full force and effect.

Section 14. - Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect
fifteen days after its complete publication in any two (2) newspapers of
general circulation.

Approved,