How to Bug a Room With Bluetooth

Last Updated: January 8, 2023

So you want to be a spy? Well, one of the tools a spy occasionally employs is called a bug. It can be as simple as a microphone hidden somewhere in a room where your enemies are consulting. These are instructions on how to make a relatively simple wireless bug.

Steps

1
Seriously reconsider. Eavesdropping is rude! But if you just have to do it, continue.
2
Turn on your Bluetooth headset. Make sure it is paired with your phone, and that the battery is reasonably fresh.

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3
Hide the Bluetooth headset somewhere in the room where it will be able to pick up sounds clearly, but make sure that it is well hidden.
4
Leave the room, but don't go too far; your Bluetooth connection should work through walls, but if you get too far away, it won't work very well. The range is about 30 feet, or 10 metres.
5
Wait for the conversation of interest to start. When it does, turn on the voice recorder on your phone. It should record through the microphone of the Bluetooth headset.
6
At the end of the conversation, stop recording. If the phone stops recording automatically after a while, you may need to start it again. Retrieve the headset and play back at your leisure.
7
Optionally, use a microphone and Audacity, a free, open-source audio recording application, to dub the conversation to your PC. From there it can be emailed, or burned onto a CD.

Community Q&A

Question

Can I do this with JBL speakers?

Community Answer

It can be done with any Bluetooth speaker that has the speakerphone function.
Question

Where do buy this product?

Community Answer

Anywhere wireless Bluetooth headsets with microphones are sold. An electronics store like Best Buy would have them, or you could buy them online from Amazon, eBay, etc.
Question

Can I use wireless earbuds to record an in-person conversation?

Community Answer

You can, if they have built-in microphones and are set to record. Make sure that said earbuds are decently charged.

Warnings

People may be offended if they find your equipment... or you.

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Helpful 27 Not Helpful 13
It is illegal in the United States to make a recording of somebody without their permission, and depending upon what you do with the recording, you could find yourself in trouble.

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Evidence of a crime obtained this way is inadmissible in court for the above reason. It's only legitimate if the subject knows they are being recorded.

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This could be an excellent way to give away a $30 piece of equipment to someone you don't trust.

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Never, ever, use this method to record intimate relations. The legal consequences of that are much more severe, not to mention the personal consequences.

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