Wyoming
Wyoming Voyeurism Laws: Hidden Cameras and Privacy Violations
Independently fact-checked against primary sources (last audited November 1, 2026). · Reviewed by the RecordingLaw editorial team. · Law checked current as of November 1, 2026. · 4 primary sources cited on this page. How we verify our legal content
Wyoming prohibits voyeurism and hidden-camera recording under Wyo. Stat. Ann. Section 6-4-304. Secretly viewing someone without consent in a private area is a misdemeanor carrying up to 6 months in jail, while capturing an image while doing so is a felony punishable by up to 5 years in prison.
Wyoming has specific criminal statutes addressing voyeurism, hidden cameras, and visual privacy violations. The primary statute is Wyo. Stat. Ann. Section 6-4-304, which criminalizes viewing or recording individuals in locations where they have a reasonable expectation of privacy. This law exists alongside the state's wiretapping statute to provide comprehensive protection against both audio and visual privacy violations.
This guide covers every aspect of voyeurism and hidden camera law in Wyoming, including what conduct is criminalized, penalties, hidden camera detection, nonconsensual intimate images, victim remedies, and related federal protections.
Voyeurism Under Wyoming Law (Wyo. Stat. Ann. Section 6-4-304)
What the Statute Prohibits
Wyo. Stat. Ann. Section 6-4-304 addresses three related offenses:
- Voyeurism (peeping). Looking or viewing, without consent, in a clandestine, surreptitious, prying, or secretive manner into an area where a person has a reasonable expectation of privacy, or under the clothing a person is wearing.
- Voyeurism with image capture. Knowingly or intentionally capturing an image with a camera or other recording device while committing that offense.
- Under-clothing recording. Using a camera to view, photograph, film, record, or livestream another person's intimate areas under their clothing without consent, whether or not the person is in a private place.
The distinction between viewing and capturing images carries different penalty levels, reflecting the greater harm caused by creating a permanent record.
Key Elements
To convict for peeping under subsection (a), or for capturing an image under subsection (b)(i), the prosecution must prove:
- The defendant acted in a clandestine, surreptitious, prying, or secretive manner
- The viewing or recording occurred in an area where the victim had a reasonable expectation of privacy (except peeping under the person's clothing, subsection (a)(vi), which applies wherever the person is)
- The conduct was without the consent of the person being viewed or recorded
The under-clothing offense in subsection (b)(ii) works differently: it requires using a camera under the person's clothing to view or record their intimate areas without consent, and it applies wherever the person is.
Protected Locations
| Location | Protected? | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Bathrooms and restrooms | Yes | Always protected, including public restrooms |
| Locker rooms | Yes | Gym, pool, school, workplace |
| Changing rooms and fitting rooms | Yes | Retail, gym, spa |
| Bedrooms | Yes | Homes, hotels, dormitories |
| Hotel rooms | Yes | Full privacy expectation |
| Medical examination rooms | Yes | During care |
| Tanning beds and booths | Yes | Enclosed private spaces |
| Private showers | Yes | Any setting |
| Dormitory rooms | Yes | Student living quarters |
Penalties
Wyoming's Voyeurism Penalty Tiers
Wyo. Stat. Ann. Section 6-4-304 sets these penalties:
| Offense | Classification | Penalty |
|---|---|---|
| Looking only (eye-only peeping, no device), Section 6-4-304(a) | Misdemeanor | Up to 6 months in jail, up to $750 fine, or both |
| Capturing an image with a camera or recording device, Section 6-4-304(b)(i) | Felony | Up to 5 years in prison, up to $5,000 fine, or both |
| Using a camera to view, record, or livestream under someone's clothing without consent, Section 6-4-304(b)(ii) | Felony | Up to 5 years in prison, up to $5,000 fine, or both |
| Adult offender with a prior voyeurism conviction, even for looking only, Section 6-4-304(f) | Felony | Up to 5 years in prison, up to $5,000 fine, or both |
| Adult offender, minor victim (any means), Section 6-4-304(d) | Felony | Up to 10 years in prison, up to $5,000 fine, or both |
| Minor convicted under Section 6-4-304(b), Section 6-4-304(c) | Status offense | Fine up to $250 |
The escalated tiers reflect the legislature's recognition that photographs, recordings, and live transmissions create permanent or broadcast records that cause greater harm than viewing alone, and that offenses against minors warrant the most serious response.
The Kobielusz Decision: A Camera Counts as "Looking"
In Kobielusz v. State, 2024 WY 10 (No. S-23-0020, Jan. 24, 2024), the Wyoming Supreme Court held that using a recording device to capture images of someone in a place with a reasonable expectation of privacy satisfies the statute's "looking" element. A defendant cannot escape the felony image-capture tier by arguing the device, not their eye, did the viewing. The court rejected the argument that the felony image-capture tier also requires proof that the defendant later looked at or viewed the recording, holding the statute clear and unambiguous on that point.
Additional Consequences
A conviction can result in sex offender registration (required for a felony conviction under Section 6-4-304(b) when the victim was a minor), loss of employment, immigration consequences, loss of professional licenses, difficulty finding housing, and social stigma.
Types of Hidden Camera Violations
Bathroom and Restroom Cameras
Installing hidden cameras in bathrooms is one of the most common violations. Devices used include cameras concealed in household items (clocks, smoke detectors, outlets), pinhole cameras in walls or vents, modified electronics (chargers, speakers) with embedded cameras, and cameras in rental property bathrooms.
Locker Room and Changing Area Cameras
Hidden cameras that secretly capture people without consent in locker rooms, changing areas, and fitting rooms at gyms, pools, schools, and stores violate Section 6-4-304. Facility operators should check these spaces for recording devices.
Bedroom Cameras
Hidden cameras in bedrooms violate the statute when placed without consent. This includes cameras by partners or spouses, cameras in guest bedrooms, cameras in rental properties and vacation homes, and cameras installed by landlords.
Upskirting and Downblousing
Using a camera to view, photograph, record, or livestream another person's intimate areas under their clothing without consent is a felony under Section 6-4-304(b)(ii) wherever it happens, including in public. The statute does not cover intimate areas visible through clothing or knowingly exposed in public (Section 6-4-304(g)), and no Wyoming decision has said whether a downward view into a top counts as a view under the clothing.
Nonconsensual Intimate Images
Current Wyoming Protections
Wyoming has a standalone statute criminalizing nonconsensual distribution of intimate images. Wyo. Stat. Ann. Section 6-4-306 (Unlawful dissemination of intimate images) makes it a crime to disseminate an intimate image of another person when the discloser knew or should have known the depicted person expected the image to remain private and did not consent, and the disclosure was intended to humiliate, harm, harass, threaten, or coerce the person, or was for sexual gratification. Dissemination under Section 6-4-306 is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 1 year in jail, a fine of up to $5,000, or both. Conduct that falls outside 6-4-306, or that involves a minor, can still be prosecuted under the voyeurism, harassment, stalking, or child pornography statutes.
Civil Remedies for Victims
A victim whose intimate images were taken by secretly intruding on their privacy can sue for intrusion upon seclusion, which the Wyoming Supreme Court recognized in Howard v. Aspen Way Enterprises (2017), and may also bring claims such as intentional infliction of emotional distress. Wyoming courts have not recognized a separate privacy claim based only on sharing an image, and Wyoming's criminal image statutes do not create a right to sue.
Federal law fills part of that gap. Under 15 U.S.C. 6851, a person whose intimate images were disclosed without consent can sue for actual damages or $150,000 in liquidated damages, plus attorney's fees and costs.
Hidden Camera Detection
Signs of Hidden Cameras
Be alert in rental properties (Airbnb, vacation homes, hotels), new living situations, workplaces, gyms and spas, and unfamiliar restrooms. Watch for small holes in walls or objects, unusual items in private areas, indicator lights (small LEDs), objects that look different from others, and unexplained wires or cables.
Detection Methods
- Visual inspection. Examine rooms carefully for unusual objects.
- Darkness test. Turn off lights; camera LEDs may be visible.
- Phone camera test. Some infrared cameras appear as bright spots through phone cameras.
- RF detector. Detects wireless cameras transmitting signals.
- Professional sweep. Security professionals can do comprehensive electronic sweeps.
What to Do If You Find a Hidden Camera
- Do not touch the camera. It is evidence.
- Document its location with photographs.
- Leave the area if you feel unsafe.
- Call law enforcement immediately.
- Contact a lawyer for civil remedies.
- Notify property management if in a rental or commercial space.
Victim Remedies and Protections
Criminal Reporting
Report to local police or county sheriff immediately. Preserve all evidence including screenshots, URLs, and messages. Leave hidden cameras in place for police. Document the discovery with photos and notes.
Protective Orders
If the conduct amounts to stalking or sexual assault, a Wyoming circuit court can issue an order of protection (W.S. 7-3-506 to 7-3-512) requiring the offender to stay away from your home, school, or work and to stop contacting you. Household members can seek a domestic violence protection order. Voyeurism alone is not a ground for these orders, and they do not order images removed. Removal usually runs through the platform's reporting tools, the federal TAKE IT DOWN Act process, or a court case.
Federal Remedies
- 18 U.S.C. 1801 (Video Voyeurism Prevention Act) is a federal criminal law that applies only within the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States, such as certain federal enclaves, not on all federal land
- Child pornography statutes apply when victims are minors
- The Cyber Civil Rights Initiative provides resources for victims
Digital and Technology Issues
Deepfakes and AI-Generated Images: Wyoming's New Synthetic NCII Statute
Wyoming's 2026 Budget Session enacted House Bill 0102 / Enrolled Act 32, signed by Governor Mark Gordon, with an effective date of July 1, 2026. The act creates a new criminal regime for AI-generated content:
- Wyo. Stat. Ann. Section 6-4-307 (synthetic NCII). Knowingly distributing AI-generated or digitally altered sexual material that realistically depicts an identifiable person without their consent is a felony when the distributor knows it was made without consent and under circumstances in which the person had a reasonable expectation of privacy, and the distribution causes or is meant to cause harm. The section also covers knowingly promoting such material online and threatening to distribute it to obtain a benefit. A first offense carries up to 10 years in prison and a $10,000 fine, a repeat offense up to 12 years. Creating such material without sharing it is not covered by 6-4-307.
- AI child sexual abuse material. The act amended Wyo. Stat. Ann. Section 6-4-303 so that using an AI system to create child pornography is a felony punishable by 5 to 12 years, and knowingly possessing AI-generated child pornography is a felony punishable by up to 10 years. A new Section 6-4-308 separately makes it a felony, punishable by up to 10 years, to develop or distribute an AI system specifically designed to create such material.
- Wyo. Stat. Ann. Section 6-1-206. Establishes that the use of artificial intelligence is never a defense to criminal liability.
- Wyo. Stat. Ann. Section 1-1-143. Provides limited civil immunity for AI developers whose tools are misused by third parties.
Federal law also reaches synthetic NCII through the TAKE IT DOWN Act (Pub. L. 119-12), signed May 19, 2025. It makes it a federal crime to knowingly publish intimate images of a person without consent, including AI-generated fakes, and since May 19, 2026 has required online platforms to remove reported images within 48 hours. It does not create a right to sue; a separate federal law, 15 U.S.C. 6851, does.
Images shared before July 1, 2026 are not left uncovered. Sharing an AI-generated intimate image of an identifiable person could already be prosecuted as a misdemeanor under Section 6-4-306, whose definition of image includes computer-generated images. The 2026 law added felony penalties for distributing such material.
Cloud Storage and Jurisdiction
Images stored in cloud services may be on servers in other states or countries, but Wyoming courts can exercise jurisdiction when the victim, recording location, defendant, or distribution target is in Wyoming.
Platform Responsibilities
Major social media platforms prohibit nonconsensual intimate images. Victims can report content through platform-specific reporting tools.
Wyoming-Specific Considerations
Tourism and Vacation Rentals
Wyoming's thriving tourism industry (Yellowstone, Grand Teton, ski resorts) means significant vacation rental activity. Guests should be particularly vigilant about hidden cameras in vacation properties. Property owners and managers who install hidden cameras in private guest areas, such as bedrooms and bathrooms, can face felony prosecution under the voyeurism statute.
Remote and Rural Settings
Wyoming's rural character means some voyeurism incidents occur in isolated settings where detection is more difficult. The legal framework applies equally regardless of location, and law enforcement agencies across Wyoming investigate these offenses.
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- Wyoming Schools Recording
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- Wyoming Security Cameras Recording
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is voyeurism under Wyoming law?
Under Wyo. Stat. Ann. Section 6-4-304, voyeurism is looking, without consent, in a clandestine or secretive manner into an area where someone has a reasonable expectation of privacy, or under the clothing someone is wearing, wherever they are. Viewing only is a misdemeanor (up to 6 months jail, $750 fine). Capturing images is a felony (up to 5 years prison, $5,000 fine).
What are the penalties for hidden cameras in Wyoming?
Installing hidden cameras to view or record someone in a private area is a felony under the voyeurism statute. Penalties include up to 5 years in prison and a $5,000 fine, or up to 10 years if an adult offender's victim is under 18. Sex offender registration applies to a conviction under Section 6-4-304(b) when the victim was a minor, and the offender can also face a civil suit.
Is revenge porn illegal in Wyoming?
Yes. Wyo. Stat. Ann. Section 6-4-306 makes it a crime to disseminate an intimate image of another person without consent when the discloser knew or should have known the person expected the image to remain private, done to humiliate, harm, harass, threaten, or coerce the person, or for sexual gratification. It is a misdemeanor punishable by up to 1 year in jail and a $5,000 fine. Victims may also sue: federal law (15 U.S.C. 6851) allows a civil suit over the nonconsensual disclosure of intimate images, and a victim whose images were taken by intruding on their privacy can sue for intrusion upon seclusion.
What should I do if I find a hidden camera in Wyoming?
Do not touch the camera. Document its location with photos. Leave if you feel unsafe. Call law enforcement immediately. The camera is evidence. You may also be able to sue the person who placed it for intrusion upon seclusion.
Can I sue someone for recording me without consent in a private area in Wyoming?
Yes. In addition to criminal penalties, victims can sue for intrusion upon seclusion, which the Wyoming Supreme Court recognized in Howard v. Aspen Way Enterprises (2017), and may bring related claims such as intentional infliction of emotional distress. Wyoming's own fee-shifting provision, W.S. 7-3-710, covers illegally recorded conversations, not silent video or images. If the images were shared, federal law (15 U.S.C. 6851) allows a lawsuit for damages plus attorney's fees.
Updates
We added to the FAQ that Wyoming's voyeurism statute also covers viewing under a person's clothing wherever they are.
Clarified that Wyoming's under-the-clothing peeping offense applies anywhere, and tied the locker-room camera line to the statute's elements.
Clarified that the privacy-location and secrecy elements apply to peeping and image capture but not to the under-clothing offense, limited the sex offender registration statement to W.S. 6-4-304(b) convictions with a minor victim, added the reasonable-expectation-of-privacy element of W.S. 6-4-307, and removed an unsourced statement about facility operators' duties.
We corrected the description of Wyoming's 2026 AI intimate-image law (it covers distributing, promoting and threatening to distribute, not creating), the AI child-abuse-material provisions, the full voyeurism penalty ladder, the under-clothing rule, the scope of the federal video voyeurism law, the civil remedies and protection orders actually available, and noted that the existing 6-4-306 already covered computer-generated images before July 2026.
Independently fact-checked against the cited primary sources; governing law re-checked for recent changes
Corrected the description of Kobielusz v. State to the holding the Wyoming Supreme Court actually reached on the felony image-capture element.
Corrected the page's false claim that Wyoming has no standalone revenge-porn statute: Wyo. Stat. Ann. Section 6-4-306 directly criminalizes nonconsensual dissemination of intimate images (misdemeanor, up to 1 year and $5,000 fine), and both the article body and FAQ now name it. Also replaced a dead citation link for Kobielusz v. State with a live source; the case's holding as described was already accurate.
Independently fact-checked against the cited primary sources; governing law re-checked for recent changes
Governing law re-checked for recent changes
Governing law re-checked for recent changes
Reviewed and approved by an editor
The Law Behind This Article
This article rests on the statutory provisions below, held in our own legal record and retrieved from the official source. Tap a section to read the operative text.
Wyoming Statutes, Title 6 - Crimes and Offenses - Chapter 4: Offenses Against Morals, Decency and Family - Article 3: Obscenity
§ 6-4-304Voyeurism; penalties.In forcecited in 12 of our articles
(a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, a person is guilty of a misdemeanor punishable by imprisonment for not more than six (6) months, a fine of not more than seven hundred fifty dollars ($750.00), or both, if he, without the consent of the person being viewed, commits the crime of voyeurism by looking or viewing in a clandestine, surreptitious, prying or secretive nature into or within an area where the person being viewed has a reasonable expectation of privacy, including, but not limited to: (i) Restrooms; (ii) Baths; (iii) Showers; (iv) Dressing or fitting rooms; (v) Bedrooms; or (vi) Under the clothing being worn by another person, regardless of whether the person is in a place where the person has a reasonable expectation of privacy.
Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-08-31 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at wyoleg.gov
Cited in 5 court opinions in our collectionLatest citing opinion in our collection: 2026
In the courts (editorial summary, independently checked):In Kobielusz (2024) the Wyoming Supreme Court held the looking element of felony voyeurism under 6-4-304(b)(i) is satisfied by knowingly or intentionally capturing an image, so the State need not prove the defendant viewed the recording. Rabuck (2006) said the statute did not narrow the indecent liberties statute.
Opinions citing this section in our collection:
- Shaun Thomas Kobielusz v. The State of Wyoming (Wyoming Supreme Court 2024, 541 P.3d 1101)✓Kobielusz hid spy cameras disguised as digital clocks in the bathrooms of the home he shared with his wife and daughters; the court held felony voyeurism under subsection (b)(i) requires only knowingly capturing an image, not proof that he later looked at the videos.
- State, Office of the Attorney General, Division of Criminal Investigation v. Thomason (Wyoming Supreme Court 2008, 197 P.3d 144)“…6-2-315(a)iv), 6-2-3l16(a)Gii) and (iv), 6-4-303(b)(iv) or W.S. 6-4-304(b) if the victim was a minor, or an ait…”
- Howard v. Aspen Way Enterprises, Inc. (Wyoming Supreme Court 2017, 406 P.3d 1271)“…tute a clearly unwarranted invasion of personal privacy”); Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 6-4-304 (a)' (LexisNexis 2017) (criminalizing t…”
Identified automatically from the court opinions citing this section — not a ranking of which case controls.
Also relied on in: Wyoming Smart Glasses Recording Laws, Wyoming Recording Laws (2026): One-Party Consent Rules, Wyoming Landlord-Tenant Recording Laws: Rights and Rules
Wyoming Statutes, Title 7 - Criminal Procedure - Chapter 3: Fugitives and Prevention of Crime - Article 7: Communication Interception
§ 7-3-702Prohibition against interception or disclosure of wire, oral or electronic communications; exceptions; penalties.In forcecited in 20 of our articles
(a) Except as provided in subsection (b) of this section, no person shall intentionally: (i) Intercept, attempt to intercept, or procure any other person to intercept or attempt to intercept any wire, oral or electronic communication; (ii) Use, attempt to use, or procure any other person to use or attempt to use any electronic, mechanical or other device to intercept any oral communication when: (A) Such device is affixed to, or otherwise transmits a signal through, a wire, cable or other like connection used in wire communication; or (B) Such device transmits communications by radio or interferes with the transmission of such communication.
Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-09-24 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at wyoleg.gov
Cited in 1 court opinions in our collectionLatest citing opinion in our collection: 2015
Opinions citing this section in our collection:
- Serna v. Bureau of Land Management Worland Field Office (Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit 2015, 614 F. App'x 384)“…nic communications except under certain circumstances. See Wyo. Stat. Ann. § 7-3-702(a). As relevant here, the statute cont…”
Identified automatically from the court opinions citing this section — not a ranking of which case controls.
Also relied on in: Wyoming Audio Recording Laws: One-Party Consent Guide, Wyoming Dashcam Laws: Legality, Mounting, and Evidence Rules, Wyoming Medical Recording Laws: Patient Rights and HIPAA Guide
United States Code Title 18
§ 1801Video voyeurismIn forcecited in 81 of our articles
Whoever, in the special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States, has the intent to capture an image of a private area of an individual without their consent, and knowingly does so under circumstances in which the individual has a reasonable expectation of privacy, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year, or both. In this section— the term “capture”, with respect to an image, means to videotape, photograph, film, record by any means, or broadcast; the term “broadcast” means to electronically transmit a visual image with the intent that it be viewed by a person or persons; the term “a private area of the individual” means the naked or undergarment clad genitals, pubic area, buttocks, or female breast of that individual; the term “female breast” means any portion of the female breast below the top of the areola; and the term “under circumstances in which that individual has a reasonable expectation of privacy” means— circumstances in which a reasonable person would believe that he or she could disrobe in privacy, without being concerned that an image of a private area of the individual was being captured; or circumstances in which a…
Official text (excerpt) · last checked 2026-07-28 · Read the full text in our law library · Verify at uscode.house.gov
Cited in 53 court opinions in our collectionLatest citing opinion in our collection: 2026
In the courts (editorial summary, independently checked):Courts have applied 18 U.S.C. 1801 mainly at its edges. United States v. Johnson (2010) read it as Congress's answer to secretly filming nudity on federal property, acquitting on a child exploitation charge instead. EPIC v. Department of Homeland Security (2011) applied the Section 1801(c) law enforcement exception to a TSA scanner claim.
Opinions citing this section in our collection:
- United States v. Anthony Helton (Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit 2019, 944 F.3d 198)“…from this list of federal offenses is video voyeurism under 18 U.S.C. § 1801. Rather than list this statute as an enu…”
- United States v. Johnson (District Court, W.D. Missouri 2010, 719 F. Supp. 2d 1059)✓A weightlifting coach hid a camera to film minors weighing in nude; acquitting him under the child exploitation statute, the court called that conduct plain video voyeurism under section 1801, but noted the section reaches only federal maritime and territorial jurisdiction.
- Electronic Privacy Information Center v. United States Department of Homeland Security (Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit 2011, 653 F.3d 1)✓Privacy groups challenged TSA body scanners under the Video Voyeurism Prevention Act; the D.C. Circuit held the statute's exception for lawful law enforcement, correctional, or intelligence activity applied to airport screening, so the section 1801 claim failed.
Identified automatically from the court opinions citing this section — not a ranking of which case controls.
Also relied on in: Is It Illegal to Video Record Someone Without Their Consent? (2026), California Voyeurism and Hidden Camera Laws: Penalties and Protections (2026), Delaware Voyeurism Laws: Hidden Cameras, Penalties, and Privacy Protections (2026)
Sources and References
- Wyo. Stat. Ann. Section 6-4-304 - Voyeurism(wyoleg.gov).gov
- Kobielusz v. State, 2024 WY 10 (Wyo. Jan. 24, 2024)(courtlistener.com)
- HB 0102 / Enrolled Act 32 (2026 Budget Session) - synthetic NCII, AI CSAM, Sections 6-4-307, 6-4-308, 6-1-206, 1-1-143(wyoleg.gov).gov
- TAKE IT DOWN Act, Pub. L. 119-12 (May 19, 2025)(congress.gov).gov
- Wyo. Stat. Ann. Section 7-3-702 - Interception of Communications(law.justia.com)
- 18 U.S.C. 1801 - Video Voyeurism Prevention Act(law.cornell.edu)
- DOJ - Citizen's Guide to U.S. Federal Law on Child Pornography(justice.gov).gov