Oktoberfest ride operator says she gives out free shorts amid upskirting video reports

Filming under a person's skirt, known as upskirting, is illegal in Germany and punishable by up to two years in prison, the BBC and the Guardian report. At this year's Oktoberfest in Munich, police arrested a 45-year-old Swiss man for filming under a German woman's dirndl. Both outlets report 10 arrests for upskirting at the festival in 2025 and seven in 2024.

The Teufelsrad, or Devil's Wheel, is one of the festival's oldest attractions. It is a spinning platform on which riders try to stay as long as they can. Signs and police posters in German and English at the tent warn against filming under skirts. The festival ends this weekend.

Elisabeth Polaczy, 80, who operates the ride, told the BBC she has been giving free cycling shorts to women and girls wearing dresses to protect them from people filming. She said she has handed out more than 100 pairs at this Oktoberfest and has done so for the past three years. The Guardian's account credits the BBC, so these statements rest on a single origin.

According to research by the Süddeutsche Zeitung, cited by both outlets, some 32,000 or more videos of women on the Teufelsrad have been found or are in circulation, some with millions of views. According to local broadcaster BR, as cited by the BBC, some images were digitally altered to show the women naked, and one woman made €9,000 from a single clip. BR's investigations, as cited by the BBC, point to a group of professional YouTubers from Ukraine and several people from Bavaria. The reports do not identify them or say whether any face investigation.

The BBC also reports that Munich has banned live streams from the festival and requires a paid city permit for filming, with hundreds of licences issued to influencers this year. It says some waitresses have started wearing cycling shorts under their dirndls.

What is disputed

The scale of the videos is described differently. The BBC says at least 32,000 videos have been in circulation. The Guardian says more than 32,000 were found on Meta platforms alone. The accounts do not directly contradict each other. The reports do not include the original research, its methodology, or how many videos were filmed illegally under skirts.

What each side says

• Polaczy told the BBC: "I want to do everything I can to make people feel secure." She says the shorts are not cheap but are worth it for her peace of mind.
• Josephine Ballon, head of the non-profit Hate Aid, told the BBC the law is insufficient because it "applies only when you film under the skirt", not when a skirt flies up. She says a new law is planned and wants uploaders and platforms punished.
• A Bavarian police spokesperson told the BBC police have run a poster campaign against upskirting at the festival since 2025.

The reports do not include any response from Meta, YouTube or other platforms, or accounts from women who appear in the videos.

Analysis

The reports point to a possible gap between what German law covers and what is circulating online: Ballon argues that footage of skirts flying up on a ride falls outside the upskirting offence. If that reading is correct, arrests and posters may address only part of the problem. Possible paths include a revised law, which Ballon says is planned though no details are given, tighter filming rules by the city, or action by platforms, whose position is not included in the reports. The video figures come from a single newspaper investigation and should be read with that limit in mind.

Produced by the Vocemundi newsroom with AI assistance.