Connecticut recording consent laws
Last reviewed: . Checked against the official statute text.
General information, not legal advice. Laws change; consult an attorney about your situation.
Quick Answer
Connecticut law uses different rules for recording in-person conversations and phone calls.
- In person: One-party consent.
- Phone calls: Depends: All parties to a private telephone call must consent (in writing, or recorded at the start of the recording), or a verbal notice must be recorded at the start of the call, or an automatic warning tone must sound.
In-person conversations: One-party consent
Under the statute, “mechanical overhearing of a conversation” means intentionally overhearing or recording a conversation or discussion, without the consent of at least one party, by a person not present and by means of any instrument, device or equipment.
(2) “Mechanical overhearing of a conversation” means the intentional overhearing or recording of a conversation or discussion, without the consent of at least one party thereto, by a person not present thereat, by means of any instrument, device or equipment.
Phone calls: Depends: All parties to a private telephone call must consent (in writing, or recorded at the start of the recording), or a verbal notice must be recorded at the start of the call, or an automatic warning tone must sound
No person may record an oral private telephonic communication using any instrument, device or equipment unless all parties provide prior consent in writing or at the start of the recording, the recording party provides a recorded verbal notification at the beginning of the communication, or the recording is accompanied by an automatic tone warning device that produces a distinct signal repeated approximately every fifteen seconds.
(a) No person shall use any instrument, device or equipment to record an oral private telephonic communication unless the use of such instrument, device or equipment (1) is preceded by consent of all parties to the communication and such prior consent either is obtained in writing or is part of, and obtained at the start of, the recording, or (2) is preceded by verbal notification which is recorded at the beginning and is part of the communication by the recording party, or (3) is accompanied by an automatic tone warning device which automatically produces a distinct signal that is repeated at intervals of approximately fifteen seconds during the communication while such instrument, device or equipment is in use.
What this means in common sales settings
- In-home sales visits
- A sales conversation in a customer's home is an in-person conversation, which the in-person rule describes: One-party consent.
- Dealership and retail floors
- A conversation on a showroom, dealership or store floor is also an in-person conversation: One-party consent.
- Field sales
- A field rep's face-to-face meetings follow the in-person rule above. Calls follow the phone rule: Depends: All parties to a private telephone call must consent (in writing, or recorded at the start of the recording), or a verbal notice must be recorded at the start of the call, or an automatic warning tone must sound. Whether a particular conversation meets that condition depends on its circumstances.
- Calls across state lines
- When a call connects people in different states, more than one state's law can be relevant. This page describes Connecticut law only; the guide's index lists the other jurisdictions it covers.
How the Itero app handles consent
The Itero mobile app for iPhone and Android asks the rep to confirm that everyone present agreed before every in-person recording, and Itero keeps a timestamped record of that consent. The app is in English. Virtual ride-alongs in the Itero app