Actually, yes, it IS illegal to record someone without his/her knowledge in several states. Each state's wiretap law is different--some allow recording when one of the parties to a conversation consents, others require the consent and knowledge of BOTH parties. Not only are recordings in two-party states inadmissible in court, the act of recording is a criminal offense. Nobody needs to give an abuser an excuse for filing a criminal charge against her!

(And, yes, the "wiretap" law doesn't only apply to taped phone conversations, but also in-person spoken communications secretly recorded using a video cam, cell phone, tape recorder, etc.)

:question:Dear Lexie, this is a litttle off topic---but, are nanny cams illegal? It seems like the whole world uses them, now. It just seems, to me, that with all the current technology that is in everyone's hands, that there are lots of grey areas. We are all being recorded lots of times when we don't really k now it........

very curiously, dandylion

I would check with an attorney. Wiretap laws generally only cover communications--the spoken (or in the case of electronic communications, the written) word. BUT there are laws concerning invasion of privacy that might be implicated in a place where someone has a legitimate expectation of privacy. Whether that would cover a childcare provider in YOUR home I do not know. It WOULD, however, probably cover putting a concealed camera in your bedroom at home to secretly record your partner's activities there. Some states have laws explicitly covering that, some states would consider it stalking.

Tricky stuff, which is why I personally would research the law in my own jurisdiction before doing it.

Thanks, Lexie. It feels like the world is getting more complex to navigate. I liked it better when we had to ride by horseback just to see and talk to another person.


dandylion