Optical blockage of a vehicle camera is determined using an image of a static scene from an environment of the vehicle is recorded with the camera. Recording conditions existing while the image is being recorded are determined. The recorded image is compared with a reference image, which is retrieved from a vehicle-external server, and is based on recordings that have been recorded by a plurality of vehicles of the same static scene in the same or similar recording conditions. Deviations in image features between the recorded image and the reference image are evaluated as being an indication that the camera is optically blocked if they exceed a pre-determined tolerance.