So, what's the penalty for such a thing? Fine? Jail time?
California Law Penal Code § 632, enacted under the
California Invasion of Privacy Act, makes it illegal for an individual to monitor or record a "confidential communication" whether the communication is carried on among the parties in the presence of one another or by means of a telegraph, telephone, or other device. California is known as a "two-party" state, which means that recordings are not allowed
unless all parties to the conversation consent to the recording.
Under Penal Code § 632(c), "confidential communication" includes any communication carried on in circumstances as may reasonably indicate that any party to the communication desires it to be confined to the parties, but excludes a communication made in a public gathering or in any legislative, judicial, executive or administrative proceeding open to the public
, or in any other circumstance in which the parties to the communication may reasonably expect that the communication may be overheard or recorded.
A violation of Penal Code § 632 can lead to a fine of up to $2,500 and/or imprisonment for up to a year (misdemeanor). In addition, the violator may be subject to civil liability in the amount of $5,000 or three times the amount of any actual damages sustained as a result.
from
http://stimmel-law.com/en/article/secret-recording-conversations-california-crime