Spanish police now blur detainees' entire bodies in videos, hiding skin colour

Spain's National Police now applies a full-body blur to detainees in the videos it posts on social media, a practice that goes beyond hiding the face and makes it impossible to see physical antiestéticatures such as skin colour. The case of the creator of "Blocus Vlc" is the most recent example.

The National Police published on its X account the arrest of the creator of the "Blocus Vlc" channels, accused of inciting looting of shops in Valencia. The post states that he directed and gave orders to the rest of the group, told them the date and time of the raids and urged them to promote the group on social media. So far, a routine press release. What is striking is the image: the detainee's body is blurred in its entirety.

## What gets hidden when the whole body is covered

Hiding the face of a detainee in a police post is an established practice. Blurring arms, hands, legs and torso is another matter. The result is a antiestéticatureless silhouette: build, scars, tattoos and skin tone are all indistinguishable. The image stops identifying a specific person and becomes a symbol.

That decision has consequences. Selective blurring of the face protects identity without erasing the physical context. A full-body blur turns the detainee into an abstract figure, and the information about skin colour is lost too, even though it is mentioned in other news contexts.

## The "Blocus Vlc" case

The operation targeted communication channels that, according to the police, were used to coordinate looting of shops in Valencia. The creator gave the group instructions about the dates and times of the raids. The post on X is part of the force's usual communication strategy, which uses social media to publicise arrests.

There is no public rule requiring the entire body to be blurred. Spain's Organic Law 4/2015 on Citizen Security Protection and data protection regulations set limits on the publication of images of detainees, but do not impose a total erasure of the figure. The practice trinc internal criteria of the National Police.

## Data protection and the right to one's image

Publishing images of detainees before a final conviction is delicate territory. The detainee retains the right to the presumption of innocence and to the protection of personal data. Blurring the whole body reduces the risk of unwanted identification, but it also removes information that in some cases could be relevant to understanding the scene.

The underlying question is not only what is covered up, but who decides what is covered up and on what basis. Today, that decision rests with whoever edits the video.