as an employee.....

wild_eyed

how am i protected in terms of my email and computer data and does thsi differ if i bring european law into an argument?

henbane

How do you mean? If you was being a naughty boy then you don't have an awful lot of protection... did they make you sign/read an agreement/protocol/policy or whatever when you started? If not, you have a bit more leeway.

Privacy acts mainly apply to customers of businesses and not the employees though an employer can't publish information about you that isn't relevant to the employment.

Unless you're about to get the bullet don't bring european legislation in to things and even if you are tread lightly.

I know they're have been a few cases in the Courts (possibly labour courts) in the last year or two about email/web access - do a search on the Times website.

oneweb

If you're using a company email account, they can (admin for sure, maybe even management) read every single message you have/have sent.

If you're sending private messages etc, you could try using myrealbox (email provider) and login in secure mode.

Regarding data on the computer (and the same applies to the company's email service) - as you're using the company's resources, the company has a right to know what you're doing with those resources. You've likely signed a contract to that effect.

People have been sacked because of misuse of email/internet @ the workplace.

mr_angry

Format the machine using a different filesystem, and then blame it on a virus. IT are usually too lazy to bother arguing. Apart from that, keep complaining that you never signed anything.

Verdammt

Oh I love this type of user. I work in IT in a leading multi-national and I come across this every day. Im at someones computer and they are like "what are you doing at MY computer". !!!!


This is the bottom line, the computer and all data on it, resources it uses are property of your company. They have full rights to access anything you have been doing, like downloading stuff or sending mails when they feel like it.

Part of my job is auditing computers and unfortunatly you have to be a right b*lloc*s when doing it. It involves going through peoples internet records and their HDD without them even knowing.

BE AFRAID, BE VERY AFRAID..........


ps. don't bother formatting your HDD because any internet records and emails can be retreived from back ups and the firewall.

sceptre

Originally posted by Billy-Joe
and they are like "what are you doing at MY computer". !!!!

Oh I never got that when I was a sysadmin. I always made it very clear that every machine in the place was mine, that I could and did monitor every webpage that was requested and that I was too lazy to read email.

Still my guru

seedot

I don't know what the situation is regarding privacy etc. but the EU law might impact IP and copyright issues. Company has access to your mail (I believe) but they may not own the copyright / other benefits in the same way.

Don't know if this is relevant to the Q.?

Victor

Originally posted by wild_eyed
how am i protected in terms of my email and computer data and does thsi differ if i bring european law into an argument?

As best I know Irish Data Protection law is based on European Data Protection law.

A friend used to work for a large consultancy firm, you could download your 6MB (this is a few years ago) porn video, but you were not to send it to 50 of your mates (50 x 6MB = .....) and would keep a copy for himself.

Separately microsoft copyright everthign you send through your hotmail account.