# Do I need everyone's permission to post on YouTube? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 6, 2011, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-everyones-permission-to-post-on-youtube/602031 "2011-11-06T04:37:56Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![automagic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a698b9/32.png) [@automagic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/automagic)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 4:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-everyones-permission-to-post-on-youtube/602031/1 "2011-11-06T04:37:56Z")
I have a recording of a prank call that my friend made to a then famous attorney about 6 years ago. The attorney went along with it for about 3 minutes even though about 15 seconds into it he knew that the call was a joke. My friend says that he is OK with me posting it but I am not sure if I need the attorney’s permission to post it. I am not looking for legal advice. I just want to know if You Tube’s rules allow this sort of thing. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 12:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-everyones-permission-to-post-on-youtube/602031/2 "2011-11-06T12:05:22Z")
I have not seen any rules about the permission of participants, and I’ve seen other prank calls on there. I would take from that that the legal rules are all that are relevant. But do know that you are essentially admitting to wiretapping, and it depends on your state on how many people have to be aware of such for it to be legal. ---
**Author:** ![Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e4f/32.png) [@Digital\_is\_the\_new\_Analog](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Digital_is_the_new_Analog)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-everyones-permission-to-post-on-youtube/602031/3 "2011-11-06T15:20:31Z")
IA(definitely)NAL. It may depend on what yo mean by a recording. Did you record a phone call? Or did you use a video camera to capture something that happened live? I also think there is a difference between something you caused to happen, and something that happened naturally. That is…if you happen to take a video of someone falling down, I think you have the rights to post it. If you string a rope across a door frame and wait for them to trip over it, you might need their permission. -D/a ---
**Author:** ![Fear\_Itself](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fear_itself/32/19637_2.png) [@Fear\_Itself](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fear_Itself)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 3:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-everyones-permission-to-post-on-youtube/602031/4 "2011-11-06T15:27:49Z")
In many jurisdictions, recording a telephone call without the knowledge of both parties is illegal. You might be posting evidence of a crime. Check the laws in your state. ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-everyones-permission-to-post-on-youtube/602031/5 "2011-11-06T16:05:25Z")
I would expect there would be a statue of limitations on wiretapping. If it were, say, seven years, would he just have to wait another year before posting? ---
**Author:** ![anson2995](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c77e96/32.png) [@anson2995](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anson2995)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-everyones-permission-to-post-on-youtube/602031/6 "2011-11-06T17:20:55Z")
> [@automagic](#): > > I am not looking for legal advice. I just want to know if You Tube’s rules allow this sort of thing. [YouTube speaks](http://www.youtube.com/t/community_guidelines): > [@](#): > > If a video you’ve recorded features people who are readily identifiable and who haven’t consented to being filmed, there’s a chance they’ll file a privacy complaint seeking its removal. We’ll notify you if that happens and give you a chance to edit and re-upload your video before we act on the complaint. If we do remove your video for privacy reasons, don’t upload another version featuring the same people. As other have said, recording the call might have been illegal depending on what state you (and the lawyer) were in. Whether or not the statute of limitations has expired depends on the laws of those jurisdictions. ---
**Author:** ![Svejk\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ea666f/32.png) [@Svejk\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Svejk_1)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 5:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-everyones-permission-to-post-on-youtube/602031/7 "2011-11-06T17:35:02Z")
So I’m curious - what was this prank? ---
**Author:** ![automagic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/a698b9/32.png) [@automagic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/automagic)\ **Post date:** [November 6, 2011, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-i-need-everyones-permission-to-post-on-youtube/602031/8 "2011-11-06T23:10:43Z")
> [@anson2995](#): > > [YouTube speaks](http://www.youtube.com/t/community_guidelines): > As other have said, recording the call might have been illegal depending on what state you (and the lawyer) were in. Whether or not the statute of limitations has expired depends on the laws of those jurisdictions. That rule is what bugged me. The way I read it is if the person is shown on the video then they can file a suit since it is obviously them in the video but since its just an audio recording then how can they show that it is really their voice? The phone call itself is hilarious with the attorney calling my friend “a drug using democrat” among other things. The lawyer, apparently, has been disbarred but I still think I am going to keep the file to myself. Thank you all for the advice. ETA: I just looked it up. Apparently someone beat me to the punch. I was not the only one with the file and someone already posted it.