3-Way Recording Stop: stopping the recording when an agent starts a 3-way

Sometimes you do not want a third party captured on tape. Maybe the closer you bridge in handles payment details, or maybe a compliance rule says recording must stop once a specialist joins. The 3-Way Recording Stop setting handles this automatically by halting the session recording the moment an agent kicks off a 3-way.

What triggers the stop

When this option is enabled, Call recording of the session stops when an agent clicks either the DIAL WITH CUSTOMER button or the PARK CUSTOMER DIAL button on their transfer panel. Both buttons begin a Three-way call: the first dials the third party while keeping the customer live, and the second parks the customer first using Call park before dialing out. Either click ends the recording. The default is N for disabled, so nothing changes until you turn it on.

Button click to recording stop

flowchart TD
  A[Agent on recorded live call] --> B{Agent starts a 3-way}
  B -->|DIAL WITH CUSTOMER| C[Third party dialed]
  B -->|PARK CUSTOMER DIAL| D[Customer parked then dialed]
  C --> E{3-Way Recording Stop enabled}
  D --> E
  E -->|Yes| F[Recording stops]
  E -->|No default N| G[Recording keeps running]
  F --> H[Bridge continues unrecorded]

When to enable it

Turn it on when the third leg of the call is sensitive by default. Common cases:

• A Closer takes over a payment conversation and you do not want card details landing in stored audio.
• You bridge to an outside party who has not consented to being recorded under your two-party consent rules.
• Your Recording retention policy treats the front of the call and the transferred portion differently.

This is a blunt, all-or-nothing switch on its own: every qualifying 3-way stops recording. If you need it to apply to some destination numbers and not others, that is where the exception setting comes in, covered in the 3-way recording stop exception.

Be clear about what this stops and what it does not. It ends the recording of the current session at the point the 3-way begins. It does not retroactively delete the portion already captured while the agent and customer were talking one to one. So your front-of-call audio is preserved, and only the transferred leg goes uncaptured. That is usually the behaviour compliance teams are after: keep the qualifying conversation, drop the sensitive handoff.

How to turn it on

1. Set 3-Way Recording Stop to Y in the campaign settings. It defaults to N.
2. Confirm which transfer buttons your Agent team actually uses, since both DIAL WITH CUSTOMER and PARK CUSTOMER DIAL trigger the stop.
3. Run a test transfer and pull the recording to confirm it ends right where the 3-way started.

A note on on-demand control

If you only occasionally need to drop the recording, you may be better served leaving this off and using On-demand recording so agents start and stop capture by hand. The 3-Way Recording Stop switch is for when you want the behaviour automatic and consistent across every transfer, with no reliance on an agent remembering to press a button mid-call.

Decide which approach matches your risk profile. Automatic is safer for compliance because it removes human error, but it is rigid: every qualifying 3-way stops, full stop. If you need nuance per destination, the exception list is the tool for that, and it is the natural next setting to configure after this one.

Where this fits

Recording behaviour around transfers is a recurring theme. For the full handoff picture see the VICIdial transfers and closers guide, and to manage the parked-customer path specifically, read park customer dial explained.

Need recording rules set up correctly for compliance from day one? Our managed plans include this kind of tuning.