In Texas, it is not illegal to record someone without their permission as long as you are part of the conversation you’re recording, but it becomes a serious crime when you record conversations you’re not part of, or when you film someone in a place where they expect privacy. Audio and video follow different rules, and the penalties for getting it wrong reach up to 20 years in prison.
The One-Party Consent Rule for Audio
Texas is a one-party consent state. If you are a participant in a conversation, whether in person, on a cell phone, or on a landline, you can record it without telling anyone else on the call or in the room.1State of Texas. Texas Penal Code 16.02 – Unlawful Interception, Use, or Disclosure of Wire, Oral, or Electronic Communications You can also authorize a third party to record on your behalf.
The rule only reaches conversations where a person actually has a reasonable expectation of privacy. Texas law protects “oral communication” spoken by someone who expects it won’t be overheard, in circumstances that justify that expectation.2State of Texas. Texas Code of Criminal Procedure Chapter 18A – Detection, Interception, and Use of Wire, Oral, and Electronic Communications A loud conversation at a public restaurant isn’t protected. A private call from a closed office is.
When Recording Audio Becomes a Crime
Two situations flip a recording from lawful to felony.
The first is eavesdropping: recording a conversation between other people when you are not a participant and none of them has consented. That’s a second-degree felony under Texas Penal Code Section 16.02.1State of Texas. Texas Penal Code 16.02 – Unlawful Interception, Use, or Disclosure of Wire, Oral, or Electronic Communications
The second is recording for a criminal or tortious purpose. Even as a participant, you lose the one-party consent defense if you made the recording to further blackmail, fraud, or another wrong.1State of Texas. Texas Penal Code 16.02 – Unlawful Interception, Use, or Disclosure of Wire, Oral, or Electronic Communications
Video Recording and Private Spaces
Video works differently. In public, people have no expectation of privacy, and filming streets, parks, stores, and government buildings is legal without anyone’s consent.
Private settings are where video becomes criminal. Texas Penal Code Section 21.15, “Invasive Visual Recording,” makes it a state jail felony to photograph or record another person’s intimate areas without consent when the person reasonably expects those areas aren’t visible to the public. It is also a crime to record anyone at all in a bathroom, locker room, or changing area without their consent, no matter what the camera captures.3State of Texas. Texas Penal Code 21.15 – Invasive Visual Recording
Both offenses require intent to invade privacy. Accidentally catching someone through a window while filming your yard isn’t the same as positioning a camera to look into a neighbor’s bedroom. Prosecutors can infer intent from things like camera placement and whether the device was concealed.
Security Cameras and Video Doorbells
Home security cameras and video doorbells are legal in Texas as long as they cover areas where people wouldn’t reasonably expect privacy. Recording your front porch, driveway, or the street is fine. Angling a camera into a neighbor’s bathroom window is not, and the same invasive visual recording law applies.3State of Texas. Texas Penal Code 21.15 – Invasive Visual Recording
If a security camera also captures audio, the one-party consent rule applies to that audio. A doorbell camera that records conversations between two visitors on the walkway can be a problem, because the homeowner isn’t a party to what they’re saying to each other.
Filming Police in Public
You have a First Amendment right to record police officers doing their job in public. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which covers Texas, recognized this right in Turner v. Driver in 2017. Filming officers from a public sidewalk is protected speech, subject only to reasonable, narrowly tailored time, place, and manner restrictions.
The limit is physical interference. You can’t block an officer’s path, shove a phone in their face during an arrest, or enter an active crime scene. Standing at a reasonable distance on public property and filming is protected, and an order to stop recording solely because you’re recording is not a lawful order under Fifth Circuit precedent.
Recording at Work
The one-party consent rule applies at work like anywhere else. If you’re in the conversation, whether with a coworker, a supervisor, or a client, you can record it without telling them. This comes up often when employees want documentation of harassment, discrimination, or verbal promises.
Legal doesn’t mean safe. Texas is an at-will employment state, and employers can prohibit workplace recordings through internal policy. Violating that policy won’t get you charged with a crime, but it can get you fired. Weigh the value of the recording against the employment risk before hitting record, and consider whether written documentation would serve the same purpose.
Calls That Cross State Lines
Federal wiretap law follows the same one-party consent standard Texas does, so the federal statute isn’t the concern on an interstate call.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 2511 – Interception and Disclosure of Wire, Oral, or Electronic Communications Prohibited The concern is the other state. About a dozen states, including California, Florida, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, Maryland, Illinois, Washington, and New Hampshire, require every party on the call to consent. Courts have split on which state’s law controls when a call crosses lines, and California courts have held that their all-party rule applies even when the person recording sits in a one-party state.
If you suspect the other person is in an all-party state, ask at the start of the call. A quick “Do you mind if I record this?” removes the risk.
Criminal Penalties
Unlawfully intercepting or recording a conversation is a second-degree felony in Texas, the same class as aggravated assault. Punishment runs from 2 to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.5Texas Attorney General. Penal Code Offenses by Punishment Range
Related conduct drops to a state jail felony. That includes manufacturing or selling eavesdropping devices designed for illegal interception, tipping someone off about an authorized law enforcement wiretap, and invasive visual recording under Section 21.15. State jail felonies carry 180 days to 2 years of confinement and a fine of up to $10,000.5Texas Attorney General. Penal Code Offenses by Punishment Range
Getting Sued by the Person You Recorded
A criminal case isn’t the only exposure. Anyone who was a party to an intercepted communication can sue under Chapter 123 of the Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code. The statute sets a floor of $10,000 in damages per occurrence, and the plaintiff doesn’t have to prove that much actual harm to collect it.6State of Texas. Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Chapter 123 – Interception of Communication
If actual damages run higher than $10,000, the plaintiff can recover those instead. A court can also add punitive damages, reasonable attorney’s fees, and court costs. The claim reaches not only the person who made the recording but anyone who knowingly uses or shares information taken from it. Because the burden of proof in civil court is lower than in a criminal trial, a civil suit can succeed even if prosecutors pass on the case.6State of Texas. Texas Civil Practice and Remedies Code Chapter 123 – Interception of Communication