Florida’s digital voyeurism law, codified at Florida Statute 810.145, makes it a crime to secretly record, view, or broadcast someone who is undressing or exposing their body in a place where they expect privacy, and separately criminalizes sharing or selling those recordings. For anyone 19 or older, the base offense is a third-degree felony punishable by up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine. A conviction under subsection (8) also triggers Florida’s sex offender registration requirements.
What the Statute Prohibits
The law reaches three distinct types of conduct.
The first is using or installing any imaging device to secretly view, broadcast, or record a person who is dressing, undressing, or privately exposing their body, without that person’s knowledge or consent, in a location where they have a reasonable expectation of privacy.
The second is intentionally permitting someone else to use or install a device for that purpose. A landlord who lets another person plant a hidden camera in a rental unit faces liability alongside the installer.
The third is using a device to secretly view or record under or through another person’s clothing to see their body or undergarments without consent. This provision covers “upskirting,” and unlike the first two forms, it does not require the victim to be in a private location.
Prosecutors must also prove motive. The person must have acted for amusement, entertainment, sexual arousal, gratification, or profit, or to degrade, exploit, or abuse the victim. The motive list is broader than a purely sexual one; recording someone to humiliate them or to sell the images counts.
An “imaging device” is any instrument that can record, store, or transmit visual images. Smartphones, camcorders, body-worn cameras, and specialized surveillance equipment all qualify. Positioning a device with intent to capture images is itself a violation, whether or not a usable recording results.
Where Privacy Is Reasonably Expected
The statute protects people in any setting where a reasonable person would believe they could fully undress without being observed. It specifically lists the interiors of homes, bathrooms, changing rooms, fitting rooms, dressing rooms, and tanning booths, though that list is not exhaustive.
The test is situational. A locked hotel bathroom qualifies. A public beach does not. For the spaces in between, courts look at whether the area was enclosed, whether locks or barriers existed, and what the space was designed for. If a person took steps to create privacy and the circumstances supported that expectation, the law applies.
The upskirting provision in subsection (2)(a)(3) is the exception. Because it targets recording under or through clothing, the victim need not be in a traditionally private space. Someone recorded this way in a store or on a sidewalk is still protected.
Sharing and Selling the Recordings
Distribution is treated as a separate crime from the recording itself. A person who both records and shares an image faces two independent charges.
Dissemination occurs when someone who knows, or has reason to know, that a recording was created through digital voyeurism intentionally shares it with another person. Uploading to a website, sending through a messaging app, or emailing all qualify. Each act of sharing can be charged separately, so distributing the same recording to five people can produce five charges.
Commercial dissemination is a distinct offense on top of that. Selling a voyeuristic recording, or handing it to someone else to sell, exposes both the seller and the original creator to liability.
Criminal Penalties
Penalties turn on the offender’s age at the time of the offense.
Offenders 19 and Older
For anyone 19 or older, digital voyeurism is a third-degree felony. The maximum sentence is five years in prison and a fine of up to $5,000. Dissemination and commercial dissemination carry the same classification and the same maximum penalties. Because each act of recording and each act of sharing is its own offense, consecutive sentences are possible.
Offenders Under 19
A person under 19 who commits the recording offense faces a first-degree misdemeanor, with up to one year in jail and a fine of up to $1,000. The lower classification still produces a criminal record that can affect college admissions, employment, and military service.
Habitual Offender Enhancements
All three offense categories reference Florida’s habitual offender statute. A person who qualifies as a habitual felony offender can be sentenced to up to 10 years rather than five on a third-degree felony. A habitual violent felony offender faces the same 10-year ceiling with a mandatory minimum of five years before release eligibility.
Sex Offender Registration
A conviction under section 810.145(8) is listed as a qualifying offense under Florida’s sex offender registry law. Registration carries consequences that often outlast and outweigh the prison sentence. Registered sex offenders face restrictions on where they can live and work, must report to law enforcement on a regular schedule, and appear on publicly searchable databases. The obligation typically lasts for life unless a court grants removal.
Exemptions for Security Cameras and Law Enforcement
The statute does not reach every camera. Four exemptions apply:
- Law enforcement surveillance conducted for a law enforcement purpose.
- Security systems where a written notice is conspicuously posted on the premises stating that video surveillance has been installed for security purposes.
- Video surveillance devices installed so their presence is clearly and immediately obvious to anyone in the area.
- Electronic communication and remote computing service providers whose systems transmit images in the course of service.
These exemptions are narrower than they look. A visible or clearly posted camera in a retail store is covered. A hidden camera in an employee changing area is not, even if the employer labels it a security measure, because it is neither posted nor obviously visible. The exemptions protect transparent surveillance, not covert recording in private spaces.
Civil Lawsuits by Victims
Criminal prosecution is not the only avenue. Florida law allows civil lawsuits for invasion of privacy, and a victim of digital voyeurism may recover several categories of damages. Compensatory damages cover tangible losses such as therapy costs and lost income. Damages for emotional distress, mental anguish, and pain and suffering are often the largest component in these cases because the psychological harm usually outweighs any direct financial loss. Punitive damages may be available where the conduct is especially egregious.
A civil case runs independently from any criminal prosecution. A victim can pursue both at the same time, and the outcome of one does not control the other. The civil burden of proof is lower than the criminal burden, so victims sometimes recover in civil court even when prosecutors decline to charge or fail to win a conviction.
When Federal Law Applies Instead
Federal law at 18 U.S.C. § 1801 separately criminalizes video voyeurism, but only within areas under federal jurisdiction. That includes military bases, national parks and forests, federal courthouses, Veterans Administration facilities, Indian reservations, and U.S.-registered ships and aircraft. If the conduct occurs on federal property in Florida, federal prosecutors may charge under § 1801 instead of, or alongside, the state offense.
The federal offense is a misdemeanor carrying up to one year in prison and a fine of up to $100,000. Its elements track Florida’s law closely: intentional capture, or intent to capture, an image of a person’s private areas, without consent, in circumstances where the victim has a reasonable expectation of privacy. Federal law also exempts lawful law enforcement, correctional, and intelligence activity. Because the federal statute only reaches conduct on federal land, almost all Florida voyeurism cases are prosecuted under 810.145.