Forever 21 Lawsuit Claims Hidden Camera Bathroom Footage Leaked To Porn Sites

Forever 21 is being sued after a former staffer accused the retailer of keeping a hidden camera in an employee bathroom at a store in Providence, R.I. Footage filmed by the camera has allegedly surfaced onto multiple pornographic websites. The federal complaint filed Tuesday in New York is seeking nearly $2 million after the plaintiff alleged to have faced "extreme emotional damages" after the restroom footage leaked online.

The fashion chain is no stranger to legal woes as it has come under fire in recent months for allegedly stealing designs from Gucci and Rihanna. This latest complaint from a former employee, however, differs from previous suits filed against the company. The plaintiff, identified as Jane Doe to guard her identity, claims to have experienced "great emotional distress and embarrassment" after discovering that she was "surreptitiously videotaped" in bathroom footage that emerged online, WWD reported Thursday.

Doe will hold Forever 21 accountable for "negligently, recklessly and wantonly allowing a person(s), whose identity is unknown to plaintiff, to enter the employee locker room and the employee restroom, located in the store."

"Forever 21 takes the privacy of our team members extremely seriously," a representative for Forever 21 said in a statement issued Thursday to International Business Times. "We have zero tolerance for any type of inappropriate behavior, and we are committed to making Forever 21 a safe space for all employees, without exception."

"We have been actively investigating this matter, which has involved law enforcement, our legal team, and national investigation teams. We are committed to our employees and will continue to search out those responsible for this heinous act," the retailer added.

Forever 21 couldn't comment further on the pending litigation per its company policy.

Surveillance cameras in an office space are generally legal, but placing hidden cameras in locations that are considered to be private — like a bathroom — is protected by the law. Employers that violate this could face legal repercussions for invasion of privacy or other similar lawsuits. Privacy invasion laws, however, vary by state.

Forever 21 isn't the only employer to come under fire for allegedly keeping a hidden video camera in its employee restroom. Walmart was sued in 2009 for more than $50,000 after two employees allegedly installed a camera into a bathroom at a branch in Pennsylvania. A Canadian doctor was also accused in November of placing a camera into an employee restroom.

This story has been updated to include a statement from Forever 21.