Waving at a security camera on Shabbat

Question

Background:
Walking past motion detector/sensor activated lights on Shabbat -- it's better to avoid setting of motion-activated lights on Shabbat.
Unintentional closing and opening of electrical circuits on shabbat --

CCTV's and satellites on the other hand, will create new video and pixel-changes regardless of whether anyone is walking by, and as such, the Jew's actions are not directly nor inevitably causing any Melachot to be performed.

Those Q&As deal specifically with unintentionally activating the sensor.

What about intentionally waving at a CCTV camera?

Is there any halachic problem? What about hashkafic (i.e. not "Shabbosdik")?

Answer 1

From Halachipedia:

Many poskim permit walking in an area where the surveillance cameras will capture a person’s image as long as he does not intend to be recorded.¹

Waving at a camera cannot be taken as unintentional.

---

1.Rabbi Mordechai Willig (“Halacha Engages Modernity Part 8,” min 48-49) agrees that it is permitted to walk in an area where there is a surveillance camera because unlike the light motion sensors, a person doesn’t benefit from the being videoed by the surveillance camera and thus qualifies as a psik reisha d’lo nicha lei which is permitted for a d’rabanan prohibition.

Rav Shlomo Zalman Auerbach, (cited by Rav Zalman Nechemya Goldberg in Ateret Shlomo vol 6, p. 57), Yabia Omer 9:35, and The Shabbos Home (p. 489) agree.

Rabbi Hershel Schachter (“Electricity on Shabbos,” min 62-8) explains that if one is doing an action that is physically disconnected from where the melacha is occurring, it isn’t considered a psik reisha. Thus, Rav Schachter says that there’s what to rely on to permit walking in an area where there is a surveillance camera or a motion sensor which will turn on a light as long as one doesn’t have intent to be videoed or turn on the light

Sh"t Besel Chachma 6:65 suggests that walking in a place where there are surveillance cameras isn't considered Koteiv whatsoever and is no different than looking in a mirror on Shabbat.

Answer 2

Partial Answer:

The Opinion of Hagaon Rav Yosef Shalom Elyashiv ZTL:

Source: HERE

Dec 14, 2010 Interesting Psak From Rav Elyashiv: No Kotel On Shabbos A few years ago Israel installed a series of security cameras throughout the Old City. It was a time when there was a rash of stabbings, and stabbing attempts, in the Old City and the cameras were meant to both help catch the perps and to also discourage it in the future, as they will know they could more easily be caught.

The issue was raised that perhaps the cameras operating on shabbos would be a problem with those walking through the Old City on Shabbos to go to the Kotel. Rav Elyashiv was supposedly asked and after being made certain that it was not based on motion sensors and no lights were to be activated based on people walking by he paskened that people could continue to walk to the Kotel on Shabbos.

Kikar Shabbos is reporting, based on a notice in the Yated Neeman, that it seems the security system is not being monitored the way it was meant to be. Therefore, Rav Elyashiv has supposedly said that people should not walk to the Kotel on Shabbos, because they might be tripping security cameras. Until the system is checked to be ok, one should avoid it. According to Kikar, while Rav Elyashiv initially was satisified with the arrangements, at a later time he, or his people, tried to get the police to make some changes to some of the technological aspects of the system to satisfy some more machmir concerns. When the police refused to comply with the request for additional changes, Rav Elyashiv supposedly withdrew his support.

Obviously such a psak will affect thousands of people every shabbos. And not just those who are walking to the Kotel These security cameras are placed throughout the Old City and if the psak is really true as publicized, people throughout the Old City will have to stay in their homes the whole Shabbos.