What is the ruling on secretly recording family phone calls to ward off فساد (mischief/corruption)?
Source: FtawySummary from Ftawy's records · added here Sep 2, 2026
Espionage is forbidden, as Allah Almighty says: "And do not spy." We are only to judge by what is apparent. However, if the guardian of the house sees signs indicating malicious conversations, he is permitted to place a recorder without their knowledge. He must then immediately rebuke the offending party upon learning of the bad conversation and not delay in doing so. As for mere accusations and baseless suspicions, they do not justify espionage.
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
Read the full answer on Ftawyhttps://ftawy.com/en/questions/10026
Where this answer came from
- Source platform
- Ftawy
- Original fatwa ID
- 10026
- Added here
- . This is when the answer was added to El Fatwa, not the fatwa's date.
- Text
- Summary from Ftawy's records, reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
- Read the full ruling
- Read the full answer on Ftawy