Consumers living across California are entitled to a variety of different types of protection due to the privacy acts and statutes within the state. Under these laws, some consumers might not realize that they were subjected to illegal call recording.

When someone fails to notify a California resident about the use of call recording software for any purpose determined by the company, that resident may have legal recourse because of the strong privacy laws in place at the state level.

Companies have to comply with a variety of different laws such as providing California call recording disclosure before being able to initiate recording on a phone call.

California’s privacy laws over call recording apply to both outbound and inbound calls.

Recording Rules and Violations

Call recording laws vary from one state to another. In many states across the country, only one party is responsible for giving consent for recording. However, California is among 11 states that require two-party consent.

In two-party consent states, according to Rev.com, each person on the call has to provide their permission before a conversation can be recorded.

This might come in the form of a recording that is played when the phone is picked up, explaining that the call will be recorded for training or quality assurance purposes. It can also be provided directly by the company representative on the phone but the call cannot be recorded until the person provides their consent by either staying on the line or verbally consenting to their call being recorded.

Many different companies have been suspected of violating the California call recording disclosure requirements, including Cannondale Bicycle Corp.

Cannondale Bicycle Corp. is named alongside Romano’s Macaroni Grill, Dermalogica, and Czech Airlines in an investigation of possible violations of disclosure rules surrounding call recording. Anyone who called into or was contacted by one of these companies and did not receive an appropriate disclosure that the call was being recorded could be entitled to pursue legal action.

Consumers might not realize that the lack of an appropriate disclosure entitles them to take possible legal action. According to Techwalla, it can be difficult to determine whether or not a call is being recorded. Many companies use messages at the beginning of a phone call that explains that the call could be recorded.

Other indications that a call is being recorded include a regular beeping noise throughout the call. Certain states require this signal to notify participants that a recording is happening. Other indications that someone could be recording or monitoring the conversation may include sudden bursts of static, clicks on the line or recurring crackling noises.

What to Do When Your California Call is Being Illegally Recorded

Initially, a consumer might not realize that their call has been recorded illegally. It can come as a shock for someone who expects a recording disclosure at some point during the call. If you are on the phone with a company and believe that you have heard beeps or another sign that the call is being recorded, you might first ask the person on the other end of the line whether or not you are being recorded.

Even if they answer that calls are recorded as a standard practice, this does not make it legal for them to record any inbound or outbound calls with California consumers without providing that notification and disclosure.

Since you could have grounds for legal action based on a company’s illegal recording behavior, you might need to speak with an attorney about the possibility of bringing a lawsuit. Phone recording laws, of course, do vary from one state to another, but California callers and call recipients have some of the broadest protections in the entire country. According to the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, this means that they can pursue legal action if a company violates the call recording laws.

Make note of the phone call that you believe was illegally recorded, including details such as:

• The number you dialed or received a call from
• The time and date of the call
• Who you spoke to at the company
• How long the call was
• Whether or not you asked if the call was being recorded

This information can be helpful for your attorney.

Anyone who believes that their call is being recorded can ask the person at the other end of the line whether or not the conversation is being monitored and recorded. Although recording in and of itself is not necessarily illegal, recording without appropriate disclosure is.