What kind of security camera “picks up” music unintentionally? In the US at least, you can’t leave surveillance microphones recording in public areas, or anywhere that people might have a conversation without knowing it’s being recorded. That’s illegal in every state, regardless of copyright.
Dash cams, any cameras in bars or club, security cams at homes and stoplights. And smart speakers are recording copyrighted music constantly.
And you're definitely wrong about recording. Single party consent is legal in most states. There's only a handful with laws against it, everywhere else recording private conversations and even phone calls is totally legal without permission.
That’s only conversations that you’re a part of. Zero-party consent is illegal everywhere. E.g., if you invite people into your home, leave the room, and they continue talking, it’s a illegal to not inform them of the microphone.
Recording audio on a security camera in a club is certainly illegal, just as it would be in a restaurant. You can’t record the private conversations of your customers without informing them.
Do you have a source for this? If someone is in your home they're on your property, and generally you can record whatever you want in a single party state. It's not "zero party" if you know there's a recording. AirBnb's do it all the time. There's exceptions for recording naked people and bathrooms, but in most states it's fine otherwise.
Recording audio in a business is 100% legal in nearly every state. Most businesses do not give you any "expectation of privacy" outside the restrooms.
> If someone is in your home they're on your property, and generally you can record whatever you want in a single party state.
That’s simply not true. They’re called “one-party states” because there has to be one party in the conversation who knows about the recording. Some states are one-party, some are two-party, but there is no such thing as a zero-party state. It is always illegal to record a conversation between two people if both are unaware of the device and believe their conversation is private. The fact that they are in your home, your car (without you), or in your business is irrelevant.
You’re confusing laws that apply to video with laws that apply to audio. You can of course record images on a security camera in your home or business (except, as you said, in restrooms, dressing rooms, etc.) Audio is different.
Interesting. Since the main test is "a reasonable expectation of privacy", I'm guessing that the majority of the time recording is still fine. If there's clearly visible cameras it could be assumed you're being recorded, at least on video, so you don't really have an expectation of privacy.
I guess the main problem would be if you hid the recording device
That’s an extremely high bar to clear. If two people are screaming at each other on a street corner with a crowd of onlookers it’s surely fine to record them. But if those same two people are quietly speaking to each other while you stand nearby with a microphone running, you’re violating the Wiretap Act. Same for recording the patrons behind you at a restaurant, the guy on a phone call on the bus, etc.
There are surprising edge cases to this. People have been found in violation of the Wiretap Act for putting microphones on their walls to collect proof that their neighbors are screaming too often. A loud argument in an apartment still has an expectation of privacy even if you can make out the words with your ear to the wall.
To have those running as a security camera recording audio is legally perilous anyway. You’d have to inform car passengers or house guests that you have a microphone running if there’s any chance they might converse without you. The trouble you’d get into for surreptitious recording is a lot worse than a YouTube takedown.
And in the ambient music scenario the accidental recording of music isn’t a problem — it’s always been fine to record live music, radio, TV, etc. for your own enjoyment. It’s the non-accidental uploading to YouTube that’s the problem. Copyright doesn’t interfere with using it as a security camera, with or without audio.
Recording audio of passengers and house guests is absolutely fine in most states. I had a dash cam recording audio the entire time I was driving rideshare, many drivers do.
And it's not legal to bypass copy protection post DMCA for recording. So in most cases it's not legal to make recordings
If you didn’t post prominent signage in your car about the recording, you were breaking the law. Uber rolled out audio recording in Latin America but had to leave the United States out until they could be sure they’d fully satisfied the requirement to inform passengers. It’s not a small issue. See https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2019/11/20/uber-pl...
