Court: Butt Dialers Forfeit Right to Privacy

If you place the call, even accidentally, people can listen in
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 23, 2015 5:03 PM CDT
Court: Butt Dialers Forfeit Right to Privacy
   (Shutterstock)

Butt dialers, be warned: If you inadvertently place a call with your posterior, you have no legal right to privacy about anything you then say. So declares the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Kentucky, reports Courthouse News Service. The case involves an executive on a Kentucky airport board who butt-dialed an assistant, allowing her to overhear 90 minutes of conversation about firing the board's CEO. The assistant took down every word, even recorded some of it, and later presented it the board. The executive sued her, but the court ruled against him this week.

"A person who knowingly operates a device that is capable of inadvertently exposing his conversations to third-party listeners and fails to take simple precautions to prevent such exposure does not have a reasonable expectation of privacy," writes Judge Danny Boggs. For the record, the ruling never once uses the phrase "butt dial," notes the Consumerist. And Bloomberg draws a lesson for all: "Having a butt has never been more dangerous." (Especially if you're a criminal.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X