California legal term
Pen register in California Criminal Law
Current through 2026 California legislative session
In California criminal law, “Pen register” is a term defined by statute rather than by its everyday meaning. Its statutory definition — quoted verbatim below — controls how the term is applied throughout the California criminal code.
What does “Pen register” mean in California criminal law?
“Pen register” means a device or process that records or decodes dialing, routing, addressing, or signaling information transmitted by an instrument or facility from which a wire or electronic communication is transmitted, but not the contents of a communication. “Pen register” does not include a device or process used by a provider or customer of a wire or electronic communication service for billing, or recording as an incident to billing, for communications services provided by such provider, or a device or process used by a provider or customer of a wire communication service for cost acco (Cal. Penal Code § 638.50)
Statutes defining or using this term
Related terms in the same statutes
This reference is informational and is not legal advice.