Some Businesses Violate Laws for Recording Phone Calls, Lawsuits Claim

A number of businesses are currently under investigation for breaking laws for recording phone calls, including Malaysia Airlines.

California Laws for Recording Phone Calls

While there are, of course, federal laws in place to protect consumer privacy and regulate phone call recording, California laws for recording phone calls are stricter than those at the federal level. According to the Golden State’s laws for recording phone calls, a business like Malaysia Airlines cannot record calls to or from consumers without first obtaining the consumer’s permission.

These state laws for recording phone calls are part of the California Invasion of Privacy Act. Under the Invasion of Privacy Act, companies are prohibited from recording a call without the consent of all parties on the call.

Of course, call recording itself is a fairly common practice for businesses, and isn’t in and of itself illegal. Indeed, recording phone calls with consumers has several benefits. It can help companies evaluate how well their employees’ are doing, as well as their own services.

When participating in a phone call with a business, you’ll often hear a warning about phone recording as a part of their “quality assurance” policies. This is the essential factor that separates legal phone recording from illegal recording. Warning a consumer about their recording practices provides them with the ability to opt out of the call if they have no wish to be recorded.

In many cases, you are not even required to say “yes” or “no” to being recorded. Instead, simply hanging up implies your refusal to give consent. Staying on the line implies consent. It is only if you do not hear such a warning at all that phone call recording becomes a problem.

If you believe your call was recorded, but were not warned about it, the company may have violated California phone call recording laws.

Any unlawful recording by Malaysia Airlines or another business violating the phone call recording laws set out in the California Invasion of Privacy Act can have substantial financial consequences. Indeed, a business may be penalized up to $5,000 per individual violation. A lawsuit—especially a class action—may result in a settlement payout of substantially more.

Several companies have already been forced to pay settlements in the multi-million-dollar range after allegedly recording phone calls that the other party was not warned about.

Customers who experience unlawful call recording by Malaysia Airlines, Casino Royale, TGI Friday’s, Baja Fresh, and other businesses in California may be able to pursue litigation. If you are a California resident and have been subjected to unlawful call recording in violation of the California Invasion of Privacy Act laws for recording phone calls by Malaysia Airlines or another company, you may be able to participate in a California call recording class action lawsuit.

Join a FREE California Call Recording Class Action Lawsuit Investigation

If you live in California and you did not receive a warning when calling a toll-free number, your call may have been recorded in violation of California law, and you may be entitled to compensation. See if you qualify to file a California call recording class action lawsuit.

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