Texas Recording, Tracking & Surveillance Laws

At a glance

Adult subject — e.g., a spouse

Your own minor child

As a parent you generally have broad authority to monitor your own minor child — especially on a phone, computer, or vehicle you own or provide. The gray area is recording the child's conversations with other people, where wiretap law and the “vicarious consent” doctrine come in and outcomes vary — and if you're co-parenting, custody orders and the other parent's rights matter. Those are marked “seek legal advice.”

General (any subject)

Can you legally surveil your spouse in Texas?

Watching a spouse from a public place is not itself a crime, but the tools people reach for are regulated. Recording: Texas is one-party consent, so you may record a conversation you take part in, but not one you are not part of. GPS tracker on their car: owner consent required. Hidden camera in a private area: illegal. Monitoring software on their phone or computer: illegal. And if the evidence was gathered illegally: inadmissible. The lawful route is a licensed Texas private investigator, who works inside these rules and documents what they find so it holds up.

Key Texas statutes

• Tex. Penal Code 16.02 — Recording & consent
• Tex. Penal Code 16.06 — GPS & vehicle tracking
• Tex. Occ. Code Ch. 1702 — Private-investigator licensing
• Tex. Penal Code 21.15 — Hidden cameras in private areas
• Tex. Gov. Code Ch. 423 — Drone surveillance

Recording & consent

Texas is a one-party consent state. Under Texas Penal Code § 16.02 you may record a wire, oral, or electronic communication if you're a party or one party consents. Recording others' communications without consent is a second-degree felony, with civil damages starting at $10,000.

'Oral communication' requires a reasonable expectation of privacy — a closed-office conversation qualifies; a loud exchange at a busy coffee shop generally doesn't. The federal overlay still applies.

Recording law enforcement

Recording on-duty police in public is protected by the First Amendment — Texas sits in the Fifth Circuit — as long as you don't physically interfere. One-party consent means openly recording a public encounter you're part of raises no wiretap problem.

GPS & vehicle tracking

Texas has a tracking-device statute: Penal Code § 16.06 makes it a crime to install an electronic tracking device on a motor vehicle without the owner's consent. Licensed private investigators may install one only with written consent or a court order. Tracking a vehicle you own is generally fine; putting a tracker on someone else's car without consent is a crime. Treat non-consensual tracking as a lawyer question.

Private-investigator licensing

Texas requires a state license to work as a private investigator, under the Occupations Code Chapter 1702, through the Texas Department of Public Safety — Private Security Bureau (PSB). Both the agency (Class A) and individual investigators must be licensed or registered; applicants meet experience and background requirements.

Out-of-state investigator reciprocity

Texas's DPS Private Security Bureau doesn't publish a broad reciprocity roster we could confirm — work in Texas generally requires Texas licensing. Confirm any temporary authority or recognition with the PSB before working a Texas case.

Hidden cameras in private areas

Photographing or recording a person's intimate area without consent, or recording in a bathroom or changing room, where they reasonably expect privacy, is invasive visual recording in Texas (Texas Penal Code § 21.15). Hidden cameras in private areas are off-limits.

Cameras in your own home / nanny cams

You can put cameras in your own home, including nanny cams in common areas. The limits: don't aim a camera at a space a guest, tenant, or worker would reasonably treat as private (a bathroom, or a live-in caregiver's bedroom) — that risks the invasive-visual-recording statute — and remember audio follows the one-party recording law. Recording others' private conversations you're not part of can be unlawful.

Doorbell & outdoor cameras

A doorbell or outdoor camera covering your own porch, yard, or the street is fine — no reasonable expectation of privacy in public view. Trouble starts if you point a camera into a neighbor's window or fenced yard, or capture private conversations you're not part of. Aim at your property, not through someone else's walls.

Workplace & employee recording

Texas's one-party consent rule applies at work: someone who is part of a conversation may record it. Secretly recording conversations you're not part of runs into the wiretap statute. Employers who monitor email or work systems should give clear notice, and federal workplace rules can apply.

Drone surveillance

Texas's drone law (Government Code Chapter 423, the Texas Privacy Act) restricts capturing images of people or private property by drone with intent to surveil — but a federal appeals court (NPPA v. McCraw, 2022) held key surveillance and no-fly provisions unconstitutional, leaving the law's reach uncertain. Drone spying can still implicate the invasive-visual-recording statute (§ 21.15) and trespass law. Because Chapter 423 is contested, treat drone surveillance of people as a lawyer question. FAA rules govern the airspace.

See an error or an out-of-date citation? Please let us know.

General legal information only, not legal advice, and no attorney-client relationship is created by reading it. Statutes and their interpretation change; entries may be incomplete or outdated. We disclaim all warranties and any liability for reliance on this page. Confirm the current law at the official Texas Codes and consult a licensed Texas attorney before recording, tracking, installing cameras, or gathering evidence.