Several states restrict or prohibit using trail camera images to aid in the taking of game. Some limits apply only during a season, some only to cameras that transmit images in real time, and some only on public land. The rules differ by state and change between legislative sessions.
This is not legal advice. Infinite Outdoors is not a wildlife agency and does not issue or interpret hunting regulations. What follows is a best-effort collection of links to official state sources, which may be incomplete or out of date. You are responsible for complying with the regulations where you hunt — always confirm the current rules directly with the state wildlife agency before you hunt.
No trail-camera-specific restriction identified as of September 2026 — official regulations portal for direct verification. CDFW-managed lands require visitors to remove all personal equipment daily, including cameras — a land-use rule, not a hunting-method restriction.
Article IV §004(E): no person may use a transmitting camera to locate or surveil game for taking, on the same day or the day following viewing. Official text via the Colorado Secretary of State.
No trail-camera-specific restriction identified as of September 2026 — official regulations portal for direct verification.
No trail-camera-specific restriction identified as of September 2026 — official regulations portal for direct verification.
IDFG's own comparison of western-state transmitting trail camera rules. Idaho itself is listed with no restriction.
Adopted 13 Aug 2026. Bans trail cameras on state Game Management Areas except by permit or DNR/agent use.
Per Iowa DNR staff, cellular/transmitting cameras have long been restricted statewide — public or private — while actively hunting.
No trail-camera-specific restriction identified as of September 2026 — official regulations portal for direct verification.
No trail-camera-specific restriction identified as of September 2026 — official regulations portal for direct verification. See the "Using Lights, Night Vision, Drones, or Wireless Devices" section of the annual handbook.
No trail-camera-specific restriction identified as of September 2026 — official regulations portal for direct verification.
87-6-401(1)(d): unlawful to possess an electronic motion-tracking device while hunting. Applies to contemporaneous possession while actively hunting.
No trail-camera-specific restriction identified as of September 2026 — official regulations portal for direct verification.
No trail-camera-specific restriction identified as of September 2026 — official regulations portal for direct verification. Statute 29 O.S. §5-201 bans computer-assisted remote hunting, but has no camera-specific provision.
No trail-camera-specific restriction identified as of September 2026 — official regulations portal for direct verification.
No trail-camera-specific restriction identified as of September 2026 — official regulations portal for direct verification.
No trail-camera-specific restriction identified as of September 2026 — official regulations portal for direct verification.
No trail-camera-specific restriction identified as of September 2026 — official regulations portal for direct verification. Ch. 62 governs blind and feeder placement near property boundaries, not cameras.
All trail cameras banned on public land 31 July – 31 Dec. Non-transmitting cameras on private land remain legal for taking protected wildlife. Sale or purchase of trail-cam media to aid taking big game, cougar or bear is unlawful. Utah Code §23A-5-307; R657-5-7, R657-33-9, R657-10-9.
No trail-camera-specific restriction identified as of September 2026 — official regulations portal for direct verification.
No trail-camera-specific restriction identified as of September 2026 — official regulations portal for direct verification.
§2-20: real-time or transmitting cameras may not be used with intent to spot, locate or aid the taking of big game. Non-transmitting trail cameras are expressly permitted.
States appear here only when we have a working link on file. A state missing from this list is not a statement that it has no camera restrictions — check with that state's wildlife agency directly.