Manufacture, distribution, possession, and advertising of wire, oral, or electronic communication intercepting devices prohibited
Official text prohibited actmental stateif conditionpenaltylegal term
(1) Except as otherwise specifically provided in this chapter, any person who intentionally—
(a) sends through the mail, or sends or carries in , any electronic, mechanical, or other device, knowing or that the design of such device renders it primarily useful for the purpose of the surreptitious interception of wire, oral, or electronic communications;
(b) manufactures, assembles, possesses, or sells any electronic, mechanical, or other device, knowing or that the design of such device renders it primarily useful for the purpose of the surreptitious interception of wire, oral, or electronic communications, and that such device or any component thereof has been or will be sent through the mail or transported in ; or
(c) places in any newspaper, magazine, handbill, or other publication or disseminates by electronic means any advertisement of—
(i) any electronic, mechanical, or other device knowing or that the design of such device renders it primarily useful for the purpose of the surreptitious interception of wire, oral, or electronic communications; or
(ii) any other electronic, mechanical, or other device, where such advertisement promotes the use of such device for the purpose of the surreptitious interception of wire, oral, or electronic communications,
knowing the content of the advertisement and knowing or that such advertisement will be sent through the mail or transported in ,
shall be or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.
(2) It shall not be unlawful under this section for—
(a) a provider of wire or electronic communication service or an officer, agent, or employee of, or a person under contract with, such a provider, in the normal course of the business of providing that wire or electronic communication service, or
(b) an officer, agent, or employee of, or a person under contract with, the United States, a State, or a political subdivision thereof, in the normal course of the activities of the United States, a State, or a political subdivision thereof,
to send through the mail, send or carry in , or manufacture, assemble, possess, or sell any electronic, mechanical, or other device knowing or that the design of such device renders it primarily useful for the purpose of the surreptitious interception of wire, oral, or electronic communications.
(3) It shall not be unlawful under this section to advertise for sale a device described in subsection (1) of this section if the advertisement is mailed, sent, or carried in solely to a domestic provider of wire or electronic communication service or to an agency of the United States, a State, or a political subdivision thereof which is duly authorized to use such device.
History: (Added Pub. L. 90–351, title III, §802, June 19, 1968, 82 Stat. 214 (PDF, 7.7 MB); amended Pub. L. 99–508, title I, §101(c)(1)(A), (7), (f)(2), Oct. 21, 1986, 100 Stat. 1851 (PDF, 4.1 MB), 1853; Pub. L. 103–322, title XXXIII, §§330016(1)(L), 330022, Sept. 13, 1994, 108 Stat. 2147 (PDF, 52 MB), 2150; Pub. L. 104–294, title VI, §604(b)(45), Oct. 11, 1996, 110 Stat. 3509; Pub. L. 105–112, §2, Nov. 21, 1997, 111 Stat. 2273; Pub. L. 107–296, title XXII, §2207(f), formerly title II, §225(f), Nov. 25, 2002, 116 Stat. 2158, renumbered §2207(f), Pub. L. 115–278, §2(g)(2)(I), Nov. 16, 2018, 132 Stat. 4178.)
Simplified explanation
It is a federal crime to intentionally mail, ship, make, assemble, possess, or sell a device you know (or have reason to know) is designed mainly for secretly intercepting phone calls, conversations, or electronic messages, when it has crossed or will cross state lines. Advertising such devices, or advertising any device for secret eavesdropping, is also a crime.