Law / United States / 
California
Connected television voice recognition privacy (Chapter 35)
Cal. Bus. and Prof. Code sections 22948.20 to 22948.25
In force since .
A sensitive categories rule binding public and private bodies.
- Obligation class
- Disclosure, Prohibition
- Audit expectation
- none
As of .
What it requires
- If you provide the operation of a voice recognition feature on a connected television in California, prominently inform either the user or the person the user designated to perform the setup, during the initial setup or installation of the television.
- Do not sell, or use for any advertising purpose, actual recordings of spoken word collected through a voice recognition feature to improve that feature, whether you are the television's manufacturer or a third party contracting with the manufacturer.
- The chapter reaches a connected television, a home-use video device with an integrated screen that exceeds 12 inches, and leaves out a personal computer, a portable device and a separate device such as a set-top box, game console or digital video recorder. A voice command that is not recorded or transmitted beyond the television is not a voice recognition feature.
- A manufacturer answers only for functionality provided at the time of the original sale, not for applications the user chooses to use in the cloud or downloads and installs, and the chapter does not apply to a product or service provided by a company covered under Penal Code section 637.5.
These lines are LexLint's reading of the law's text, as of .
If you get it wrong
Criminal exposureNo
Private right of actionNo
Penalty structure
Section 22948.23(c): a person who knowingly engages in a violation is liable for a civil penalty not to exceed $2,500 for each connected television sold or leased in violation of the chapter. Section 22948.23(b) lets a court enjoin a person who knowingly engages in a violation.
- Rule
- Per violation only
- As of
- Currency
- USD
- Per violation unit
- Violation
- Per violation amount
- 2,500
Who enforces it
Enforcement body
California Attorney General or any district attorney, who may prosecute actions under the chapter exclusively in the name of the people of the State of California and may seek an injunction and a civil penalty. The chapter does not create a private right of action.
Settledness
- As of
- Open questions
- Does a voice recognition feature that transmits only a transcript or other derivative of spoken words, and not an audio recording, produce "actual recordings of spoken word" under section 22948.20(b)?
- Does a person "provide the operation of a voice recognition feature within this state" under section 22948.20(a) when a television sold outside California is first set up by its user in California?
What this law does
Requires a person or entity that provides the operation of a voice recognition feature in California to prominently inform, during the initial setup or installation of a connected television, either the user or the person the user designated to perform the setup. Recordings of spoken word that a connected television manufacturer collects through the feature to improve it may not be sold or used for any advertising purpose.
Recordings of spoken word collected through a voice recognition feature by a third party contracting with a manufacturer, for the purpose of improving the feature, may likewise not be sold or used for any advertising purpose. No person or entity may compel a manufacturer or other entity providing a voice recognition feature to build specific features that let an investigative or law enforcement officer monitor communications through it.
A connected television is a video device designed for home use with an integrated screen that exceeds 12 inches, and does not include a personal computer, portable device, set-top box, game console, or digital video recorder. A voice recognition feature does not include voice commands that are not recorded or transmitted beyond the connected television.
A user is the person who originally purchases, leases, or takes ownership of a connected television, and a person incidentally recorded when a user activates the feature is not a user. A manufacturer is liable only for functionality provided at the time of the original sale, and not for applications the user chooses to use in the cloud or downloads and installs. The chapter does not apply to a product or service provided by a company covered under Section 637.5 of the Penal Code.
Only the Attorney General or a district attorney may bring a civil action under the chapter, which creates no private right of action. A person who knowingly engages in a violation is liable for a civil penalty not to exceed $2,500 for each connected television sold or leased in violation of the chapter.
When LexLint raises it
When your app profile says your app processes voice recordings.