How we store video surveillance footage at the BVG.
Video surveillance is a highly sensitive issue, because CCTV cameras in public spaces can be controversial for some people. Video recordings are important, however, because they help to increase security in public places as video footage is often indispensable evidence for the prosecution of crimes. And because your safety is very important to us, we rely on video surveillance.
But what happens to your data in the long term? Since 2022, BVG’s entire fleet of vehicles as well as all subway stations have been fully equipped with video technology, i.e., video surveillance technology. We’re talking about almost 7,000 CCTV cameras here that are on 24/7. But don’t worry, unless the footage is needed in order to investigate a crime, everything is permanently deleted after 48 hours.
In this article, we want to inform you on what happens with the footage from the video surveillance of our subway stations and BVG vehicles and how they can help you in an emergency, for example if you witness or experience a negative incident.
Let’s start at our emergency call pillars
However, before we begin talking about the specifics, one thing should always be clear: if something bad happens to you or you see something bad happening to someone, you should always first contact our security personnel via our emergency call pillars, or call the police under 110, or the fire department under 112. You can do this either during or after the incident.
Surveillance data in the BVG: here’s what you need to know!
If you need video surveillance footage for the prosecution of one or more crimes due to a negative incident in our underground stations or vehicles, the procedure is as follows:
Please always use the emergency call pillar first and foremost to report a negative incident, e.g. if you got pickpocketet. You can also talk to our drivers or on-site security staff. Either will help you straight away and call the police or fire department if necessary. Please note: You also have to report the incident to the police. Alternatively, you can skip the first step and just go straight to the police and file a police report there. Once a report is filed, the police will then request the necessary data from us. Contact via Berlin’s police is essential! For legal reasons, recordings are not made available to private individuals.
Sometimes an emergency situation can cause you to forget everything in the heat of the moment and mean that you don’t let our staff know or use the emergency call pillar. Don’t worry! You can also contact us at a later point, via the emergency call pillar, our service channels or at info@bvg.de. Please also additionally contact the police.
Even though we are not allowed to hand out video recordings to individuals, we can try our best to secure the necessary data before it is automatically deleted after 48 hours. On top of that, it’s important for us to be informed about negative incidents, so that we can adjust our security measures and reinforce them if necessary. You can read about how we handle such complaints in our article on discrimination. However, as mentioned above, please always use the emergency call and information pillar in order to report any negative incidents or crimes.
What footage is recorded in our video surveillance?
Our vehicles and subway stations are all video-monitored and fully equipped with CCTV cameras. These record video, but no sound!
As a state-owned company, the BVG is subject to the Berlin Data Protection Act. If you have further questions or need information regarding data protection, please refer to this link (in German).
Summary
In summary, we document and automatically store surveillance footage in our vehicles and subway stations for 48 hours, after which they are automatically deleted. All BVG subway stations and vehicles are CCTV monitored. If the video data is needed in connection to a crime, the incident must first be reported to the police, who can then request the necessary video data from us. You should also notify the BVG about the incident and clearly mention that the video data is needed for a criminal investigation. This can best be done by using the emergency call pillar.