Penal Law § 250.05

Eavesdropping  ·  as in force on May 31, 2026

§ 250.05 Eavesdropping.

A person is guilty of eavesdropping when he unlawfully engages in wiretapping, mechanical overhearing of a conversation, or intercepting or accessing of an electronic communication.

Eavesdropping is a class E felony.

Official sourcehttps://www.nysenate.gov/legislation/laws/PEN/250.05

In plain English

Unlawfully wiretapping, mechanically overhearing a conversation, or intercepting or accessing an electronic communication is eavesdropping, a class E felony. ★

Marked in the text: penalties, time limits, sums of money. Editorial emphasis added by this edition; it does not appear in the statute as enacted.

In print

This provision appears in Volume 4 — The Court Clerk: Penal Law; Volume 1 — The Court Officer in Plain English; Volume 3 — The Court Officer: Penal Law; Volume 3 — Your Career: Penal Law in Plain English.