Fact · Voice privacy and security
3years of imprisonment, maximum
Section 201(1) of Germany's Criminal Code makes it an offence, punishable by up to three years in prison or a fine, to record without authorisation another person's spoken word that is not spoken publicly.
Checked against its source on October 17, 2026
In the source's own words
“Mit Freiheitsstrafe bis zu drei Jahren oder mit Geldstrafe wird bestraft, wer unbefugt 1. das nichtöffentlich gesprochene Wort eines anderen auf einen Tonträger aufnimmt”
Strafgesetzbuch (StGB) § 201: Verletzung der Vertraulichkeit des Wortes, Federal Ministry of Justice of Germany, gesetze-im-internet.de, n.d., Section 201(1).
Open the original- What it measures
- Germany's criminal rule protects the spoken word, not only the phone line. It applies to recordings made on a device, whatever the medium.
- What it does not show
- The quote is German. The English claim is our paraphrase. The statute has other subsections and defences, and whether a given recording is 'not public' is a matter for a court.