Quizzes & Puzzles3 mins ago
Snooping At Work
One of my friends has had a fair amount of friction with his line manager and raised the issue with the LM's boss. He did this from his personal email account.
He'd left his email open on his PC but with other windows on top of it - it wasn't visible to passersby. However, when he was briefly away from his desk, his line manager hopped onto his computer, went on to his personal email account and found the message - and confronted him about this.
He's wondering what his position is here. It was a personal account, but was being accessed via company equipment; however, it's not clear whether the LM would have had the right to access his machine and information in this manner?
He'd left his email open on his PC but with other windows on top of it - it wasn't visible to passersby. However, when he was briefly away from his desk, his line manager hopped onto his computer, went on to his personal email account and found the message - and confronted him about this.
He's wondering what his position is here. It was a personal account, but was being accessed via company equipment; however, it's not clear whether the LM would have had the right to access his machine and information in this manner?
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When I worked in the NHS the rules were simple. Staff were allowed to use work computers for personal stuff during breaks but NOTHING showing or stored on a work computer could be kept personal or private. Staff were told this when they were given their access permissions. Nowadays, I wonder if your friend's company has an IT policy and what it says.
Hi boys – no 1: bad horsey’s fren' is a damned fool,
What does he expect for chrissakes ?
Let us call bad horsey’s friend “donkey drawers “
And the LM, “John Smith” JS
.
DD left a sensitive email in public for all to see – so one snooped. I didn’t bring anything I didn’t want my employer to see, into work.
.
Was JS allowed to access it? I am not sure if JS even “accessed” it. JS just read it. What if DD had left a confidential document, flapping in the breeze ? I think it is more likely that JS thought DD had, and wanted to catch him out. JS has a right to see all DD’s output at work.
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It is a work matter and on the facts of it, JS has a right to see it. JS would have a right to the text anyway under the data protection regs (it is his data because he is named).
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Is it in any way confidential within the work place? – nope. what about if it is terrorist or money laundering ? yeah but it isn’t, is it? [sorry that refers to reporting activity – and not doing it].
.
What about outside the work place? – well it occurred in a position where the employer demands the right to see anything on a work place computer and his agents. So that rather skewers that one.
.
What does he expect for chrissakes ?
Let us call bad horsey’s friend “donkey drawers “
And the LM, “John Smith” JS
.
DD left a sensitive email in public for all to see – so one snooped. I didn’t bring anything I didn’t want my employer to see, into work.
.
Was JS allowed to access it? I am not sure if JS even “accessed” it. JS just read it. What if DD had left a confidential document, flapping in the breeze ? I think it is more likely that JS thought DD had, and wanted to catch him out. JS has a right to see all DD’s output at work.
.
It is a work matter and on the facts of it, JS has a right to see it. JS would have a right to the text anyway under the data protection regs (it is his data because he is named).
.
Is it in any way confidential within the work place? – nope. what about if it is terrorist or money laundering ? yeah but it isn’t, is it? [sorry that refers to reporting activity – and not doing it].
.
What about outside the work place? – well it occurred in a position where the employer demands the right to see anything on a work place computer and his agents. So that rather skewers that one.
.
// Unauthorised access - sackable in many places.//
kindof
and really no
n ot unauthorised - the LM JS can see what he likes so long it is work related in a work place
and I am not sure looking at a screen is "access"
There is an early House of Lords case about whether an IRA mole staring at the screen of the PNC (had all the car numbers of the spooks see?) was "accessing" if they had done nothing else.
[they couldnt show that they had noted down any info]
kindof
and really no
n ot unauthorised - the LM JS can see what he likes so long it is work related in a work place
and I am not sure looking at a screen is "access"
There is an early House of Lords case about whether an IRA mole staring at the screen of the PNC (had all the car numbers of the spooks see?) was "accessing" if they had done nothing else.
[they couldnt show that they had noted down any info]
It depends on the company policy. At my work it would be your friend in the wrong on two counts - leaving his PC unattended and unlocked and secondly using his work computer for personal email (but other companies may allow this). Work email accounts can be viewed by managers and IT and HR in the right circumstances. Staff don't own the computer nor what's stored on it.
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