workplace environment e-mail_and_internet_privacy_at_work

E-Mail and Internet Privacy at Work

E-Mail and Internet Issues

Cyber-loafing accounts for 30% to 40% of lost worker productivity.


As much as 70% of traffic on porn sites occurs during work hours.


Check your company’s policy on e-mail and Internet use at work.

Employer Policies

Employer Policies

Be aware of your company’s employee conduct policy.

Employer Policies

Your company reserves the right to read and monitor all communications made by employees at work.

Employer Policies

An employee conduct policy restricts personal use of company property to “reasonable” use.

Employer Policies

Some companies prohibit any personal use, which is perfectly legal.

Employer Policies

The use of company resources is subject to the company’s no-harassment and no-discrimination policies.

Employer Policies

Nearly three-fourths of major U.S. companies are recording and reviewing some aspect of their employees’ communications.

Employer Policies

About 40% of companies are using Web-monitoring software to record and track employees’ Web activities.

The Law

The Law

The courts have generally upheld an employer’s right to review or monitor their employees’ use of Internet and e-mail.

The Law

Employees don’t have an expectation of privacy even when the company assures it will not intercept communications.

The Law

Because all communication equipment belongs to the employer, it has the right to access and review information on it.

Lawsuits

Lawsuits

A major newspaper fired 23 employees for e-mailing distasteful jokes.

Lawsuits

A major chemical company fired 50 workers and disciplined 200 more for transmitting pornography through employee e-mail.

Lawsuits

Work-related e-mails on someone’s home computer were subpoenaed in a lawsuit involving a major airline.

Lawsuits

E-mail has become one of the richest sources of information used against employers and managers in lawsuits.

Lawsuits

E-mail that contains discriminatory or sexually harassing material is becoming commonplace at work.

Lawsuits

It generally takes more than one e-mail to support a claim of a hostile environment in a court of law.

Productivity: A Big Issue


As many as 70% of a leading brokerage firm’s customers do their online trading from their office desks.


Productivity could potentially become the biggest casualty of indiscriminate Internet use.


Know and stay within your company’s guidelines for e-mail and Internet use.


Be aware that e-mail and Internet use can add up and eventually show up in your company’s monitoring system.


Check your company policy for guidelines of e-mail and Internet use.


Take personal responsibility for how you spend your time.

Using Others’ Equipment


Never log on to a system as someone else.


Never log on to someone else’s hard drive or access his or her system without approval.

Summary of Risks

Summary of Risks

It is your responsibility to examine the contents of your communications.

Summary of Risks

Ensure your communications do not violate the policies of your employer.

Summary of Risks

Be aware that anything that passes through your fingertips into cyberspace may be discovered.

Summary of Risks

Your employer owns your e-mail and Internet resources and can legally use them to find out information about you.

Summary of Risks

Your employer’s resources are to be used productively.

Summary of Risks

Redirecting those resources excessively towards personal use not aligned with the company’s goal may result in termination.

Staying Out of Trouble


Read your company’s e-mail and Internet policy.


Assume your boss is reading your e-mail or looking over your Web usage.


Do not send jokes or subscribe to a joke list at work.


Start limiting your time spent on personal usage of the Web, including e-mail.


Avoid emotional comments and sarcasm. Focus on objective, verifiable facts.


Do not e-mail employee problems to human resources or management. Call instead.

The Family Test

Ask yourself whether you’d be saying or doing the same thing in front of your family.

The Newspaper Test

Would you say or do the same thing even if it was published on the front page of the newspaper?


Nearly one-third of companies in a poll have fired workers for improper Internet use, and two-thirds have had to do some disciplining.

E-Mail and Internet Privacy at Work

workplace environment e-mail_and_internet_privacy_at_work

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