Call recording without consent is illegal in the state of California, with companies prohibited from call recording before gaining the consent of the person being recorded.
Business found to be recording without consent could face serious financial penalties, penalties that can quickly accumulate. Therefore, businesses like Malaysia Airlines must obey state privacy laws when operating in the state of California.
Malaysia Airlines is the national carrier of Malaysia, flying 40,000 guests on a daily basis in international and domestic flights. Like numerous other companies, Malaysia Airlines has a designated customer service line for incoming calls and may place calls to consumers to confirm information or ask further questions.
In addition, Malaysia Airlines may record telephone conversations for customer satisfaction or employee training purposes. However recording without consent is illegal regardless of what the conversation is used for.
There are steps companies can take in preventing such fines. When customers call in, companies must give a disclosure of potential call recording at some point during the conversation. This is typically done at the beginning of the call, in which customers are told to either stay on the line or push a button on their dialing pad.
It is important to note that even without a dialing prompt, staying on the line is considered implied consent under California state law.
Overview of California Call Recording
California is one of the most progressive states in the country in consumer protection laws, and it takes the privacy of its citizens very serious. In order for call recording to be legal in California, all parties involved must give consent before the conversation can be recorded.
This requirement is found within the California Invasion of Privacy Act (CIPA), which is meant to help protect the privacy of residents and to require consent before businesses can record telephone calls. This means that there are very few exceptions in which recording without consent is illegal, and it should be assumed illegal when businesses conduct customer service calls or telemarketing.
Generally, recording without consent directly violates California law, so Malaysia Airlines and other companies should confirm that their businesses are compliant.
Even though this is state policy, it has recently been alleged that certain companies operating in the state of California have been recording without consent from customers. A class action investigation has recently been launched due to these complaints, with Malaysia Airlines being one of the companies investigated.
Several companies have already paid multimillion dollar settlements, and at least one lawsuit filed. One man filed a California call recording lawsuit against Chopard USA Ltd., alleging the business had recorded phone call without his consent.
According to the California call recording lawsuit, the man claims that the company illegally recorded his call on their customer service line from his cellphone and that the company failed to provide disclosure or gain consent.
Businesses can potentially face fines up to $5,000 per illegal call recording plus three times the amount of damages actually done. Consumers looking to file their own California call recording lawsuit should document all relevant calls and note if a disclosure was given when summarizing the conversation.
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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