- If you're like most people on this planet,
you consider yourself a good person.
You probably hold doors open for people,
you have good manners, and of course,
you would never think of breaking the law.
But you might be surprised to learn
that you may be breaking multiple laws every day
and you don't even realize it.
Yes, there are laws in place that forbid
many of the things that we are used to doing every day,
but are actually illegal.
So today I'm going to tell you exactly
what those laws are, and trust me,
they're going to surprise you.
And yes, these are real laws, and yes,
you can be arrested for them.
So without further ado, here are
10 Laws You've Broken Without Even Knowing.
Yeah, you also might wanna get your lawyer on the phone
by the end of this one, just in case.
Number one is singing Happy Birthday.
If you've ever sang the song Happy Birthday
in a public place, believe it or not,
you've broken the law, surprise!
The song was actually copyrighted back in 1935,
and technically, you need to pay royalties
in order to use it.
Now, you might be thinking, well right,
that's technically the law, but nobody actually
abides by it, well actually that song brings in
an estimated $2 million a year, so somebody's paying it.
The copyright to the song was purchased by
Warner Music in 1988 for $25 million, and since then,
has been the topic of multiple lawsuits.
Now the song remains in a huge grey area at the moment,
but most legal professionals realistically
consider this song to be in a public domain at this point.
However, Warner Music would disagree,
mostly because the song is the highest earning
single song in history, as well as
the most recognizable song in the English language.
But don't worry, you keep singing that Happy Birthday song,
whatever makes you feel good, baby.
You stick it to the man with your bad self. (barks)
Number two is connecting to unsecured WiFi networks,
let's be completely honest, some of you get pretty excited
when your neighbor has unsecured WiFi,
free surfing and no bill!
(makes mouth noise)
Good times, except that it can get you thrown in prison.
Connecting to an unsecured WiFi connection falls under
the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, which makes it a crime
to have unauthorized access to anyone's computer
or their WiFi.
How serious is it?
Well in the United States, it's a third degree felony
that carries a prison sentence of up to two years in jail
and up to $10,000 in fines.
Now, realistically, will this happen?
Probably not, but, I wouldn't want to test getting caught.
Besides if you really want WiFi, just come over to my place.
My WiFi is Bill Nye The Science Fi and the password
is science rules, I'm a loner.
Number three is selling stuff online.
Most of us at some point have sold something online,
whether it's through Ebay or some other online merchant.
And these sites have very clear rules when it comes to
selling things like bootlegged movies, alcohol and tobacco
products, this you already know, but did you know that
anything you sell online, big or small, must be claimed
as income on your Federal tax return?
Oh yeah, you're going to jail because you sold an old
sweater, sorry.
No of course I'm kidding, chances are the Federal government
is not going to find out about the $10 that you made
off of selling your old Pogs, but the fact remains that
the law requires you to claim that money, in fact,
theoretically the IRS, CRA or whatever governing tax body
your country has doesn't care where your income comes from
as long as you claim it and pay taxes on it.
This literally means that if you're a drug dealer,
you better be claiming all those dime bags you sellin, baby.
Although nobody really expects all you mini Pablo Escobars
out there to start paying your fair share of taxes, so,
you go on your way, number four is throwing away junk mail.
Okay, be honest, if you've ever moved into a new place,
what do you do with the junk mail that you receive that
was meant for the previous tenants?
How many times have you actually written return to sender,
or person has moved on those envelopes and taken the time
to go back to the post office?
I'm gonna guess none of you, most people in those situations
wind up throwing those pieces of mail in the garbage,
but guess what?
It's super illegal, in fact is a Federal crime to open,
destroy or otherwise tamper with another person's mail.
And that includes tossing it in the trash, even junk mail.
How illegal is it?
Well, try a $250,000 fine and potentially five years
in prison, yikes.
Number five is carrying a marker, if you like crafts prepare
to cry, believe it or not, if you've ever carried a marker
like a Sharpie or any other kind of permanent writing tool,
depending on where you are you likely broke the law.
This is because many places have passed anti-graffiti laws
that ban you from carrying aerosol cans or
permanent markers, in the U.S., many states like New York
and California have even passed laws making it illegal
to buy markers if you're under the age of 18.
The government considers them graffiti tools, and although
it's unlikely that you'll be frisked, or for that matter
arrested, in many states it's not worth the risk.
Number six is using a car air freshener.
That air freshener hanging from your rear view mirror
making your whole ride smell like pine trees and bird songs
is actually illegal, according to many cities, states
and highway patrol agencies, anything that hangs to impede
your view of your windshield, even a small amount,
can lead to an accident and therefore is against the law.
Yes this includes most air fresheners, hanging dice,
sunglasses or anything else that restricts your field
of vision, even though it might seem completely silly,
it's been proven that even a tree style air freshener
can completely block out someone on a motorcycle if it sits
at the right angle.
Number seven is betting with your friends, if you've ever
been hanging with your friends and you all start placing
bets, say on a game like football or basketball, you may
have actually broken the law.
According to the Illegal Gambling Act in the US, if there
were five or more people involved in a total of $2,000
or more, it constitutes illegal gambling and is punishable
for up to 10 years in prison, now you likely haven't bet
that much, so you're probably okay, but if you ever had
a poker night with the dudes, there's a chance that that
amount may have been involved.
Now don't worry, you're not going to prison, unless someone
narcs on you, watch out for that new guy with the mustache,
you can't trust anyone with a mustache.
Number eight is throwing snowballs, as a kid growing up
in Canada, snowball fights were super common.
As they are pretty much anywhere else in the world that
it gets cold, it's one of the only benefits that we get
for living in a giant freezer for six months of the year.
But because it's on this list, you guessed it, throwing
snowballs in the act of hitting someone with it is actually
assault, now before you roll your eyes and think that that's
stupid, in February of 2014 a 13 year old boy in Chicago
threw a snowball and hit a police officer in the arm.
And guess what, the boy was arrested, brought up on felony
charges and was suspended from school for five days.
And that wasn't the only case, in 2010, five young men
in New York City were arrested for the same thing.
So obviously the moral of the story here is don't throw
snowballs, throw the snow ball, hit him in the head
and run as fast as you can, get away, just laugh it,
laugh as you go because you got him good.
Number 9 is using fake names online.
If you've never done this, you haven't been on the internet.
Everyone at some point has entered fake info online
for something, whether it's an online registration form,
a Facebook name or some gaming site.
Ah, and again steps in the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act.
That act forbids anyone from using a false name for signing
up for anything, and believe it or not, doing so constitutes
hacking and is punishable for up to 20 years in prison.
Mhm, that's right, you wanna think again about calling
yourself Tony Flamingo?
But hey, you're thinking nobody's actually gonna go to jail
for something like that, right? (chuckles)
Nope, in 2010, a prison guard named Matthew Laqua was
arrested for creating a fake Facebook profile for his boss.
And arrests like this are becoming much more common as
cyber bullying and fraud continues to grow, so don't risk
it, P.S. if anyone leaves a comment on this video with
the username Tony Flamingo I will personally respond to it.
And number 10 is swearing in public, everybody at some point
swears, in fact studies suggest that swearing is a healthy
and natural way to relieve anger.
But believe it or not, if other people hear you, you just
broke the law, in many places including the United States
and Canada, the criminal code states that if swearing causes
other people in the vicinity to take notice, then it is
indeed an offense that can be met with fines, and yes,
even jail time, it falls under creating a public disturbance
or disturbing the peace, so be careful.
So those were 10 laws that you've likely broken and didn't
even know it, but now that you know, I need to know because
I'm curious, be honest now, how many of these laws have you
broken, you don't have to saw which ones, but just leave
a number in the comments, or, you know, if you're feeling
badass, say exactly which ones, ooh look at you.
And as always, if you subscribe to my channel, remember to
click the little notification bell beside the Subscribe
button so that you can enable notifications to be alerted
for the next time I upload my next video, and that's it,
have a great day guys, obey the law, I don't want you to be
going to jail, you know what I'm saying?
You're valuable to me and I love you.
I don't want no conjugal visits, what?
Okay I'll see you guys next time, peace.