Something a little disturbing happened yesterday at the mall.  As I walked into a ladies' clothing store,  I noticed a guy leaning on a rack of clothes, fiddling with a cell phone, as if he was waiting on someone.  We made brief eye contact but I didnt think anything of it.  

Eventually, as I looked throughout the store, I came back towards him, not paying attention or even looking at him.  But for some reason, I decided to glance at him.  As soon as I looked at him, I noticed he had a cell phone in his hand, facing me, but he quickly put it down!

WTF??

I swear the same thing happened last month while eating dinner with a girl friend.  My friend told me that a guy sitting across from us just took a cell phone pic of me!  I was furious.  So, I took out my phone and took a pic of him!

Taking pictures of random people?  Who does that??!

But then that's usually reserved for people that have some level of notoriety  LOL

Maybe the guy worked for TMZ and is doing research on hookers?

Were there any black helicopters outside the mall?

No black helicopters.  Nor was I wearing my hooker costume.  I was dressed as a normal, conservative woman both times.  I wonder how often this happens without women realizing it??

No black helipcopters...CHECK

Dressed as a "regular" gal....CHECK

Why didn't you just ask this fella what he was doing?  He might have thought you were the hottest thing since sliced bread?

Or..he's a regular on "Criminal Minds" as the bad guy each week....In which case, run like hell  LOL

There is no privacy in public, so smile.

He took a picture of you, and then you took a picture of him, LMAO. He probably is a pervert, or has no life. I remember back in the day, the only way of taking a picture is with an actual camera, and the camera shows a bright flash.

Now, we got cameras and video cameras on phones and cameras that don't even look like cameras. It would be difficult to confront the guy, because all he has to do is say, well, he is using one of his apps and there is no way of proving it.

I came across an interesting article. It stated that it was legal for people to take random pictures of people without their consent if it was in a public setting, and not a private setting such as their home.

There was news in DC area, that some pervert was taking pictures of people on Metro trains.  Nothing LE could do as it is legal.

-- Modified on 8/12/2012 5:29:19 PM

Its pretty pathetic.  Yes, I assumed its legal to photograph others in public, but thats just creepy and rude and one day, these guys will photograph the wrong person and get their phone shoved up their ass.

with the big-ass flash bulbs.

Next time someone snaps a photo of you whip it out and take one of them, taking out their retinas while your at it.

And yes, it's legal to take someone's photo in a public place without getting their consent. But it can be kinda creepy.

has some sort of ultra bright strobe-ing flash-gun that can induce an epileptic/neurological seizure in the recipient.

 Fun like that just never gets old.

I suggest you don't even think twice about this. Confront the person without hesitation. You tell them you did not give them consent to take your picture and unless they erase it immediately you are calling the police. You might as well just call the police right there. Seriously, this is not allowed in any court of law without your permission. The people are doing it should be considered very dangerous to your privacy and personal space. Fotos appear everywhere for any kind of reason that can be manipulated for any reason you can think of. If your are under surveillance they must produce a warrant from the court. This is another reason why Facebook is a very dangerous medium. Pictures where you are caught in the background where people are drinking or there is criminal activity, unbeknownst to you, may be taking place. This is the world we live in now unfortunately, and it is up to you to make it stop.

Privacy is a precious thing.

He might be waiting for someone while texting his favorite hooker...  INSIDE a store is public access but not a public place.  Management would have at least booted him OR called the Police.   The resurant is similar...   I would have asked for the manager & had management speak to the guy.  If nothing else, he'd have been put on notice.  
The stores/resurants want your business & want you to feel comfortable, not stalked.   The legal situation may vary with jurisdiction.

When my friends and I used to frequent a nude beach, big tour buses of Japanese tourists would pull up. The couples, all dressed to the nines, would traipse down to the shore line and proceed to walk, in the heat, a good 200 yards to the clothing optional area. Once there, Mr Yamamoto would instruct Mrs Yamamoto to go stand next to a group of nude girls with great bodies. I guess he liked this backdrop better than the ocean. Then he would start clicking away with his Nikon. Yeah and guess what, I doubt that the Mrs was even in the shot...

We got so pissed at this that one day a group of my friends and myself decided to do something about it. The next dbag that did this was treated to a tall nude girl approaching him, snatching his camera out of his hand and removing the film...yes before digital cameras and have it exposed in the bright sunlight. Mr Yamamoto was then cheerfully instructed to place Mrs Yamamoto with her back to the ocean and then snap away. Very soon, these tourists stopped dong that. I guess word got around.

Here's a tip, if that happens to you, take a short video of him and tell him it's going on Youtube with the title "dickwads who photo random women".

I would check the laws if I were you because in certain states it has been said that if they are in a public place there is nothing illegal about it. The only thing the person taking the photo cannot do is use it for profit/publication without the persons written permission, for example a model/photo release form.

Thanks Ritchie and maybe I got overzealous there. Some of the comments about getting a manager of an establishment involved or someone in authority might be more appropriate depending upon the circumstance. As far as I know, a person cannot just take your picture without your written permission, or use it in any way, without your written permission. People with cell phone cameras feel they have a right to do whatever they want with your image. The images can then be manipulated because of technologies available or words may be added to completely misrepresent you. How many times do we have to see someone be arrested for taking pictures under girls skirts on the subway? If you are uncomfortable confronting the individual then get a policeman and ask them what their business is in taking your picture. If they refuse, ask the policeman to arrest them. You have the right to do that. Usually a conversation ensues. If the photog refuses to let the policeman view the pictures, it's off to the desk sergeant, as long as you are willing to pursue this.The cell phone can be confiscated to let the forensic experts look at it for evidence. Most people just show the policeman the picture, you ask to have them delete it, and they delete it. People are taking pictures all the time in NYC. If I see that I may be in a frame, I ask them to hold on for a moment so I can get out of it. No problem.

But if someone has some purpose in taking my picture without my consent, they will have a very big problem. If someone asks to take your picture, and you agree, you're on your own. But I suggest you have legal documentation about what that person can and cannot do with your image. Part of this question is what is "a public place" and what is "intent". If the intention of the photog is to damage your reputation in any way, you have rights to pursue them in a court of law. And the Brooklyn Bridge might be a public place, but if someone publishes your picture while you're playing hookie from work there can be many ramifications for both you and the photog that can be avoided. Ask politely to have them erase it. They can take another picture without you in the frame. Also, a bar, nightclub, sexclub etc. is not a "public place", these are private establishments where consent of picture taking is necessary and consent by the subject of the pictures is also necessary.

The point is, don't be a victim. If you become a victim, take action about it.

Rude but in a world where everytime we step outside we are tracked by the GPS in our phones, everytime we walk into a street, store, or hotel we are on survellience camera, people put their whole lives on facebook and twitter, google is tracking our location on google map, it is getting more and more difficult to expect any kind of privacy anytime we step in public.