Listening to Telephone Calls

Listening to telephone calls means using special technology that goes directly into another person’s telephone line to listen to conversations taking place on that line. It’s done by accessing the phone signal.

Most people think that listening to phone calls, or phone interception, is something law enforcement uses to solve criminal cases. In fact, private citizens sometimes engage in phone listening or interception with the aim of gaining an advantage over a business competitor or opponent in a legal dispute by discovering their secrets. And you might not know that under California law it is a crime for non‑law enforcement persons to intercept another person’s phone without their permission; therefore it is a crime.

If you are accused of the crime of listening to telephone calls in California, you may feel more than a little surprised. The fact that wiretapping or phone interception can result in criminal penalties is not widely known, and many people may think: “If the police can do it, why can’t I?”

However, in California it is a crime for private citizens to listen to phone calls of another person. It is also a crime to intercept calls on cell phones and wireless phones.

In most cases, the crime of telephone spying (or interception of wireless phones or telephone calls) in California means that the prosecutor may choose to try it as either a felony or a misdemeanor, depending on the case circumstances and the accused’s criminal record.