Getting Consent
Harmony provides features to help you record meetings in compliance with consent and local recording laws.
Your responsibility
When using Harmony, you are the Data Controller. This means you are responsible for:
- Complying with local recording laws (e.g., One-party vs. All-party consent).
- Informing participants that they are being recorded.
- Obtaining necessary consent before the meeting starts.
Legal Note: This guide provides general information. Always consult your legal counsel for advice specific to your jurisdiction.
How Harmony helps
Harmony Companion appears in the participant list as "Harmony" or "Harmony (Recorder)". This visual indication helps you maintain compliance. The following compliance features are planned but not yet available in Harmony:
- Bot Announcements: We are working on allowing the bot to verbally announce itself upon joining.
- Chat Notifications: There will be an option to automatically post a "This meeting is being recorded" message in the meeting chat.
Best practices for getting consent
1. Verbal announcement (Recommended) The most common method is to state your intent clearly at the start of the call.
"I'd like to record this meeting with Harmony to capture notes and action items. Is everyone okay with that?"
2. Calendar invitation Include a notice in your meeting invite so participants know ahead of time.
"Note: This meeting will be recorded using Harmony for transcription purposes."
3. Written policy For internal teams, include a recording policy in your employee handbook or employment contracts.
Handling objections
If a participant declines to be recorded:
- Acknowledge their concern immediately.
- Stop the recording via the Harmony dashboard or kick the Companion from the call.
- Document that the recording was stopped upon request.
Industry-specific requirements
Healthcare (HIPAA) Recording calls with Protected Health Information (PHI) requires an Enterprise plan and a signed Business Associate Agreement (BAA).
Legal & Financial Conversations involving attorney-client privilege or regulated financial advice may require strict retention policies and audit trails. Ensure your workspace retention settings match these legal requirements.