Residents of California should know that their state has some of the strictest privacy laws in the nation. Some companies are currently coming under fire for alleged violations of California’s phone recording laws. Under those laws, companies can record phone calls, but only when consent is obtained.

Each state has its own call laws that determine whether consent needs to be obtained from parties on the call, or whether the person who is making the phone call has the right to record phone calls.

Violations of California recording laws can entitle the victim to compensation when it can be shown that a company failed to get consent and should have obtained consent from the consumer on the other end of the line. Numerous companies are under investigation due to claims that businesses are violating these laws, including the Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards hotline.

Is Telephone Recording the Same as Telephone Tapping?

Telephone tapping is strictly regulated in many countries around the world, but telephone recording is slightly different. There are some states across the country that require all parties to consent to the recording.

California is one of them. If a company fails to get consent from a consumer on the line, such as a recording that states at the beginning of the call that the call could be recorded for training or quality purposes, or the customer service representative on the phone directly telling the party that the call will be recorded, then this could be a violation of privacy laws.

When Can Companies Record Calls?

Companies in California can only record phone calls when they have received the permission of the other party on the line. Companies are allowed to record calls when this legal rule is met. Often, these calls are used to help train new employees or to reference escalated customer service issues. A sign that a company is recording a call outside of a verbal confirmation could include beeps or tones that play throughout the call. The use of these sounds may be enough to create implied consent if the other party remains on the line and continues the conversation.

What is the California Call Recording Law?

California Penal Code 632 outlines the California call recording law and establishes laws surrounding eavesdropping, such as recording of phone calls and in-person conversations.

Since California is an all-party consent state, everyone involved in the conversation has to give either express or implied consent before the conversation can be recorded. Sometimes a customer service representative will say something like, “Can I record this call so I can take notes later?” or “Hi, this is [insert name here] on a recorded line.” A recorded notification stating that the call may be recorded can lay the grounds for implied consent.

Practically every organization who has representatives based out of California or who are doing business with California residents should know about the risks and possible privacy rights violations that could be alleged against them if the call is recorded without proper consent.

If you have recently been on the phone with a business, such as the Southwest Airlines Rapid Rewards hotline, and believe that your phone call was recorded without your authorization, this could entitle you to take legal action. You may benefit from participating in a free California call recording class action investigation.