Recording phone calls in Virginia is allowed – as long as you’re one of the parties on the call.

Virginia is considered a one-party consent state, meaning that only one party needs to give permission for it to be recorded. So if you’re one of the parties on the call, and you consent to yourself, you’re free to record all of the other parties. No need to announce your intent to record or play a beep in the background. Just go ahead and silently record.

Now if you’re evesdropping on the call, then it becomes illegal for you to record that communication.

According to VA Statute 19.2-62, “It shall not be a criminal offense under this chapter for a person to intercept a wire, electronic or oral communication, where such person is a party to the communication or one of the parties to the communication has given prior consent to such interception.”

If you don’t want to mess around with physical tape recorders, try Secure Speak. With our service, you just 3-way in one of our recording lines to any call. Whatever the line hears gets silently recorded and emailed to you when the call is done. You can do this on inbound and outbound calls, or even to calls in progress. Our call recording plans start at $14.99, has a 30 day money back guarantee, and gives you everything you need to start recording right now.

Secure Speak is not a licensed lawyer and any statements do not constitute legal advice. Contact a lawyer for information pertaining to your specific case, and reference VA Statute 19.2-62 directly.

Posted 6:25 pm by securespeak & filed under Legal.

Delware is known for being a very business friendly state, so it shouldn’t be much surprise that recording phone calls is legal too. Here are the specifics:

Delaware is considered a one-party consent state. This means that if you’re one of the parties involved on the call, then you can record it without consent from the other parties. You don’t need to announce that you’re recording, play a beep in the background, or anything like that.

Specifically, Delaware Statute 2404 says it is legal…

“For a person to intercept a wire, oral or electronic communication where the person is a party to the communication or where one of the parties to the communication has given prior consent to the interception, unless the communication is intercepted for the purpose of committing any criminal or tortious act…”

When you signup for Secure Speak, you get a phone number that you can 3-way into any call. Whatever that number hears gets silently recorded, and emailed to you as an attachment when you hang up. We’re currently offering free 14-day trials and will give you everything you need to start making crystal-clear recordings on any call.

Secure Speak is not a licensed lawyer and any statements do not constitute legal advice. Contact a lawyer for information pertaining to your specific case, and reference Delaware Statute 2404 directly.

Posted 6:06 pm by securespeak & filed under Legal.

Arizona is one of 38 states where you only need one party consent to record a phone call. So if you’re one of the parties on the call, then yes, you can record it! You don’t even have to tell the other parties that you are recording.

Officially, from Arizona Statute A.R.S 13-305, violation is when a person:

“Intentionally intercepts a conversation or discussion at which he is not present, or aids, authorizes, employs, procures or permits another to so do, without the consent of a party to such conversation or discussion.”

SecureSpeak makes it dead simple to record calls. Signup, and we give you a phone number that you can 3-way into any call. Whatever that line hears gets recorded silently in the background, and when the call is over an email is sent to you with the recording attached. We currently are running a free trial so you can record calls for 14-days for free.

Secure Speak is not a licensed lawyer and any statements do not constitute legal advice. Contact a lawyer for information pertaining to your specific case, and reference Arizona Statute A.R.S 13-305 directly.

Posted 5:55 pm by securespeak & filed under Legal.

We’re based in Colorado, and many of our customers are too, so we frequently get asked if it’s legal to record phone calls in the mile high city.

The short answer – yes, you can record phone calls in Colorado.

Colorado is considered a “one-party” consent state. This means that only one party to a conversation needs to give consent – and that person can be you. It’s worded this way so that you can’t evesdrop and record a different conversation that you’re not a party to.

How do I record calls?

Colorado law doesn’t explicitally state how you can and can’t record calls. You can use a handheld recorder, a microphone, or of course our call recording system. With our system, you simply 3-way in our recording line to any call – whatever it hears gets recorded and sent to you as an attachment in an email. See how recording calls works, and take a look at our pricing page.

Secure Speak is not a licensed lawyer and any statements do not constitute legal advice. Contact a lawyer for information pertaining to your specific case.

Posted 4:18 pm by securespeak & filed under Legal.

For New York being a blue state, it was surprising for us to discover the rather relaxed laws around recording calls in New York State.

In New York, you can record phone calls without consent from the another party – as long as you’re considered one of the parties in the call. This is known as “one party consent.” So as long as you’re on the call, and not eeves dropping someone elses call, you can record it without letting the other party know.

New York is one of 38 states that only require one-party consent. See the full list of states requiring consent to record phone calls.

Do both parties have to be in New York for this to apply?

This is where the law gets a little fuzzy. If you’re calling to another one-party consent state, you’re fine without announcing that you’re recording. If you’re calling someone from an all-party consent state, you’ll have to dig a bit deeper. The California Supreme Court (an all-party consent state), has stated that the one-party consent caller has to adhere to the stricter laws of the California caller (Cf. Kearney v. Salomon Smith Barney Inc., 39 Cal. 4th 95 (2006)).

How do I record calls?

New York doesn’t state what type of equipment is allowed to record calls. You can use a portable recorder, a microphone, or of course, our call recording system. With SecureSpeak, you just 3-way in our call recording line into any call. Anything the recording line hears gets recorded and sent to you via email as an attachment. This works for both incoming and outgoing calls, as long as your phone has the ability to 3-way in calls. Browse our call recording plans page to find a package that fits your needs.

Secure Speak is not a licensed lawyer and any statements do not constitute legal advice. Contact a lawyer for information pertaining to your specific case, and reference the New York penal code directly.

Posted 7:24 pm by securespeak & filed under Legal.

Before you record a phone call, you may have to announce to the other parties. In the US, 38 states require only one-party to consent. This means that if you’re a party to the call in one of those states, you can record without telling the other parties on the call (except if the other party is in California, then you need to adhear to California’s more strict all-party consent laws).

All Party Consent States

• California
• Connecticut
• Florida
• Hawaii
• Illinois
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Montana (requires notification only)
• Nevada
• New Hampshire
• Pennsylvania
• Washington

One Party Consent States

• Alabama
• Alaska
• Arizona
• Arkansas
• Colorado
• Delaware
• Georgia
• Idaho
• Indiana
• Iowa
• Kansas
• Kentucky
• Louisiana
• Maine
• Michigan
• Minnesota
• Mississippi
• Missouri
• Nebraska
• New Jersey
• New Mexico
• New York
• North Carolina
• North Dakota
• Ohio
• Oklahoma
• Oregon
• Rhode Island
• South Carolina
• South Dakota
• Tennessee
• Texas
• Utah
• Vermont
• Virginia
• West Virginia
• Wisconsin
• Wyoming

Secure Speak is not a licensed lawyer and any statements do not constitute legal advice. Contact a lawyer for information pertaining to your specific case.

Posted 7:17 pm by securespeak & filed under Legal.

Whether you’re conducting an interview, running a call center, or gathering evidence for a court case, it’s important to know the legality of recording verbal conversations. Many of our customers live in California, which is one of the most strict states when it comes to recording calls.

In California, you can record phone calls – you just need all parties to consent.

What is considered consent?

In regards to recording verbal communication, by saying “this conversation is being recorded” before any other communication, the other party is consenting based on their willful act to continue the conversation.

How about playing a beep in the background?

Some services simply play a beep at a regular interval, representing the presence of a recording device. The beep tone needs to last between 170 and 250 milliseconds, and broadcast to both parties every 12 to 15 seconds during the recording period. The tone also needs to be a 1260 to 1540 Hertz tone. While hearing the beep is often considered common knowledge of recording, we always recommend announcing that the call will be recorded too.

Penalties

According to California’s Penal Code Sections 630-638, recording without consent:

“… is punishable by a fine not exceeding two thousand five hundred dollars ($2,500), or by imprisonment in the county jail not exceeding one year…”

And fines for repeat offenders are up to $10,000.

How do I record calls?

The law doesn’t specifically state equipment you have to use, so it’s up to you. You can use an old fashioned handheld recorder, a microphone, or of course, our call recording system. With our system, you simply 3-way in our recording line into any call. Anything the recording line hears gets recorded, and the recording is sent to you as an attachment via email. Take a look at our call recording plans page to find a package that fits your needs.

Secure Speak is not a licensed lawyer and any statements do not constitute legal advice. Contact a lawyer for information pertaining to your specific case, and reference the California Penal Code 630-638 directly.

Posted 10:43 am by securespeak & filed under Legal.