Obtaining a CCTV recording (accident, theft, conflict): what to do under Georgian law

What to do

1. Time works against you: the law does not set a retention period for recordings. The owner of the cameras sets it in writing (Law on Personal Data Protection, Art. 10), so the recording may be overwritten. On the same day, submit a written request: the data subject may require that data needed as evidence be blocked (preserved) (Law on Personal Data Protection, Art. 17); the decision to block or refuse must be made immediately, and no later than 3 business days after the request (Law on Personal Data Protection, Art. 17).
2. Then request a copy as a data subject: the data subject has the right to access their own data (a recording in which they appear) and to receive a copy free of charge (Law on Personal Data Protection, Art. 14); the copy must be provided no later than 10 business days after the request (Law on Personal Data Protection, Art. 14). A refusal “because of other people's data” is partly lawful: the right of access may be restricted to protect the rights of other persons captured in the frame (Law on Personal Data Protection, Art. 21), but only to the extent necessary (for example, by hiding other people's faces), and the burden of proof lies with the owner (Law on Personal Data Protection, Art. 21). Request a copy with bystanders blurred.
3. Refusal or silence: a complaint to the State Audit Office. In the complaint you may ask the Audit Office to block the data until a decision is made (Law on Personal Data Protection, Art. 22); violation of data subject rights: a warning or a fine of GEL 1,000 (turnover up to GEL 500,000) (Law on Personal Data Protection, Art. 72).
4. For a civil dispute (damage from a traffic accident or a neighbour): if the evidence may disappear, apply to the court for securing of evidence, including before a claim is filed (Civil Procedure Code of Georgia (CivPC), Art. 109); before a claim is filed, the magistrate judge of the district where the recording is located is competent (CivPC Art. 110); then, during the proceedings, the court on a party's motion requests the evidence from the person who holds it (CivPC Art. 103).
5. Crime (theft, assault, hit-and-run): a report of a crime, and you have the right to receive a written certificate of it (CPC Art. 101); in the criminal case, the recording is requested by a court order on the prosecution's or defence's motion (CPC Art. 136). For city cameras, go through the investigator or request access to your own data.
6. Where to apply: owner of the camera → State Audit Office; district (city) court; police or prosecutor's office.
7. Evidence: request with proof of delivery; photo of the camera and the sign; exact time of the event; certificate of the police report.
8. Traps: waiting for weeks, since the recording is erased on the owner's schedule; requesting the recording as “public information”, since other people's data will not be released; the basis is access to your own data; the police seize a recording only in a criminal case.

Be sure to check

• an urgent written request to preserve (block) the recording: a reply within 3 business days
• the right to a free copy of your own data within 10 business days; other people's faces may be hidden
• in case of refusal: complaint to the State Audit Office, securing of evidence through the court (including before a claim)
• for a crime: a police report; the investigation requests the recording through the court