The Laws of Video Surveillance in the States

Video surveillance is a powerful tool in the fight against crime. It also safeguards your home, business or loved ones from being victimized by unlawful actions. But there are also concerns regarding the recording people who might or might not be aware of the installed cameras. And to address these concerns, there are laws. The United States is a country of laws. Laws are put in place to help guide the public on what they can and cannot do. The same goes for video surveillance. Specific state regulations must be followed when it comes to recording video footage. This article will provide you with information about home video surveillance laws by state, so that you can avoid any legal problems!

In the United States, no common federal law regarding video surveillance is there so, every state has to have its own guidelines and laws against surveillance. But of all 50 states, there are only 16 that have formulated a law regarding video surveillance.

A glimpse into the video surveillance laws by state has been given below:

1) Arkansas

The law of Arkansas says that you can record a video as long as it is a public place, but the same cannot be done if there is a reasonable expectation of privacy, like in a bedroom or restroom.

2)Georgia

The law of Georgia says that you can record a video as long as it is in your home or premises. Still, the same cannot be done if there are reasonable expectations of privacy.

3)New Hampshire, Maine, Kansas, South Dakota, and Delaware

In these states, the installation of the devices without prior permission is unlawful.

4) Michigan, Tennessee, Utah

Recording an individual without their consent is unlawful in private places like home or office. It should not be done without the prior permission of the person being recorded, and it should take place in a public space. It is also unlawful to record an individual when they have a reasonable expectation of privacy, like inside their home or bathroom.

5) Hawaii

Hawaii is a one-party consent state that is legal to record video without the consent of all the persons being recorded as long as one party is aware of it unless you are in a private setting, as, if you are, then the consent of all parties is required.

6) Florida, Alabama, and Minnesota

Florida, Alabama, and Minnesota are two-party consent states that require the parties’ prior consent to be recorded.

7) California

Private conversations cannot be recorded and are deemed unlawful.

The Absence of Video Surveillance Laws

The absence of law regarding video recording is when there are no laws in your state surrounding video surveillance, but the lack of a law doesn’t give you free rein to install cameras in private settings.

The absence of law may or may not work against you when presiding over the case. This means each case is handled individually, which can go either way depending on how it’s judged.

Law regarding Audio recording in the USA

The law regarding audio is relevant if a video surveillance system is capable of capturing audio as well. There is a federal law in place regarding this, and 37 out of 50 states follow it. The federal law states that one-party consent is required for it to be legal, which means that one party has to consent before the audio can be recorded.

Whereas, the remaining 13 states have their version of this law and insist on a two-party consent policy. This means that you need to be aware of the laws of where you reside in the context of video as well as audio recording for your surveillance system to be legal. Because even if you obtained a piece of evidence that abides by the law and other does not, then the evidence might become invalid. Cameras afford you a sense of security and also deters crime, so always make sure to keep them in plain sight, especially if you are not aware of the laws. And to be better prepared and learn more about the rules and installation of a video surveillance system, contact our team at CCTV monitoring.