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Kicked off company email address because manager of the same name has joined the comp

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  • 12-10-2019 2:50pm
    #1
    10000maniacs
    Registered Users Posts: 4,797 ✭✭✭


    A collegue of mine in an American multinational company has been kicked off his email address he has used for years because a new senior manager has joined the company with the same name. My collegue has been working there for over 10 years and has numerous accounts associated with the email address. Any legal suggestions with this case?


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    #2
    Fann Linn
    Registered Users Posts: 7,771 ✭✭✭Fann Linn


    Would it not be the company's property?


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    #3
    10000maniacs
    Registered Users Posts: 4,797 ✭✭✭10000maniacs


    I suppose it would.


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    #4
    BDI
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,005 ✭✭✭BDI


    Choose your battles would be my advice.


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    #5
    banie01
    Registered Users Posts: 16,474 ✭✭✭✭banie01


    Don't use work email or indeed any email that you don't have full control over as a recovery email or option for any online service.
    The email address is company property, its allocation, revocation and content are all at the whim of your friends employer IMO.

    Granted, reallocating it is bad form. Its theirs to do what they want though.
    That said, its fairly poor practice on your friends part to have any online services and accounts that are not explicitly work related associated to a work email address.


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    #6
    punisher5112
    Registered Users Posts: 24,647 ✭✭✭✭punisher5112


    I do hope he wasn't using it for personal as others may well reply to him thinking it is actually him but it ain't...


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    #7
    Sam Quentin
    Registered Users Posts: 2,223 ✭✭✭Sam Quentin


    banie01 wrote: »
    Don't use work email or indeed any email that you don't have full control over as a recovery email or option for any online service.
    The email address is company property, its allocation, revocation and content are all at the whim of your friends employer IMO.

    Granted, reallocating it is bad form. Its theirs to do what they want though.
    That said, its fairly poor practice on your friends part to have any online services and accounts that are not explicitly work related associated to a work email address.

    Ahhhhh c'mon,.it becomes part of you deliberately or not,.I think fierce bad form of the company to do such a non empathetic nasty thing. Wether the email is the company's property or not.
    Nasty Nasty.


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    #8
    Earleybird
    Registered Users Posts: 271 ✭✭Earleybird


    Strange move by the company. Email address in use for over 10 years, there will be plenty of mails that will come through to the wrong person for a while


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    #9
    10000maniacs
    Registered Users Posts: 4,797 ✭✭✭10000maniacs


    banie01 wrote: »
    Don't use work email or indeed any email that you don't have full control over as a recovery email or option for any online service.
    The email address is company property, its allocation, revocation and content are all at the whim of your friends employer IMO.

    Granted, reallocating it is bad form. Its theirs to do what they want though.
    That said, its fairly poor practice on your friends part to have any online services and accounts that are not explicitly work related associated to a work email address.

    He is a SW developer And has numerous company Microsoft accounts and software subscriptions based on the email. And probably some external accounts like everyone has.


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    #10
    10000maniacs
    Registered Users Posts: 4,797 ✭✭✭10000maniacs


    Earleybird wrote: »
    Strange move by the company. Email address in use for over 10 years, there will be plenty of mails that will come through to the wrong person for a while
    Two US companies merged recently (banking) and this is one of the fallouts.


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    #11
    Steve
    Moderators, Category Moderators, Entertainment Moderators, Sports Moderators Posts: 22,584 CMod ✭✭✭✭Steve


    So, he notifies the good clients of the change and the new guy has to deal with all the shyte? win win.


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    #12
    banie01
    Registered Users Posts: 16,474 ✭✭✭✭banie01


    10000maniacs wrote: »
    He is a SW developer And has numerous company Microsoft accounts and software subscriptions based on the email. And probably some external accounts like everyone has.

    Hopefully his company's IT management and merger team can sort something out for notifying other people and migrating his accounts.


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    #13
    Claw Hammer
    Registered Users Posts: 6,160 ✭✭✭Claw Hammer


    10000maniacs wrote: »
    A collegue of mine in an American multinational company has been kicked off his email address he has used for years because a new senior manager has joined the company with the same name. My collegue has been working there for over 10 years and has numerous accounts associated with the email address. Any legal suggestions with this case?

    There could potentially be a breach of the data protection act. he could complain to the data protection commission.


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    #14
    BDI
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,005 ✭✭✭BDI


    Claw Hammer wrote: »
    There could potentially be a breach of the data protection act. he could complain to the data protection commission.

    It’s the companies data. I’d say it’s fairly similar to a work phone number. They took a lads phone off him in my job before with absolutely no notice. Just turned up asked him for it and gave it to somebody else.


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    #15
    Carawaystick
    Registered Users Posts: 8,779 ✭✭✭Carawaystick


    BDI wrote: »
    It’s the companies data. I’d say it’s fairly similar to a work phone number. They took a lads phone off him in my job before with absolutely no notice. Just turned up asked him for it and gave it to somebody else.
    Its the workers data.
    gdpr wrote:
    Personal data are any information which are related to an identified or identifiable natural person


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    #16
    un5byh7sqpd2x0
    Closed Accounts Posts: 1,862 ✭✭✭un5byh7sqpd2x0


    BDI wrote: »
    It’s the companies data. I’d say it’s fairly similar to a work phone number. They took a lads phone off him in my job before with absolutely no notice. Just turned up asked him for it and gave it to somebody else.

    It's not though, there's an expectation to privacy even at work


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    #17
    Weltsmertz
    Registered Users Posts: 308 ✭✭Weltsmertz


    Bad form. There is an expectation of privacy even if technically it belongs to the company. I have conducted several relationships via my work e-mail.


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    #18
    El Tarangu
    Registered Users Posts: 1,615 ✭✭✭El Tarangu


    Weltsmertz wrote: »
    I have conducted several relationships via my work e-mail.

    Social/romantic relationships? :confused:


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    #19
    Hammer of the Clods
    Registered Users Posts: 42 ✭Hammer of the Clods


    Enrique Rapping Pelvis wrote: »
    It's not though, there's an expectation to privacy even at work


    Is there though?



    There is probably a policy in place explaining how the email should be used. I've had to sign several over the years and they usually specify that emails are for work product only.



    Work emails are generally administered by other employees, stored and controlled on company servers/resources. In my mind using work email would be the same as writing to someone on a companies stationary (headed paper), sending it through the company's postal system so they pay for the postage (or franking), and then filing a copy of the letter and any replies in a company filing cabinet.





    It's crappy that the company have given the address to someone else, but it's theirs to do with as they please.


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    #20
    L1011
    Moderators, Business & Finance Moderators, Motoring & Transport Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 67,651 Mod ✭✭✭✭L1011


    I don't know what IT department would ever consent to this as it is effectively guaranteed to result in data disclosure that shouldn't happen

    There's nothing about being able to stop your employer changing your email address - but immediately reissuing it to someone else is insanity.


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    #21
    Vetch
    Closed Accounts Posts: 422 ✭✭Vetch


    Hammer of the Clods wrote: »
    Is there though?

    There is probably a policy in place explaining how the email should be used. I've had to sign several over the years and they usually specify that emails are for work product only.

    Work emails are generally administered by other employees, stored and controlled on company servers/resources. In my mind using work email would be the same as writing to someone on a companies stationary (headed paper), sending it through the company's postal system so they pay for the postage (or franking), and then filing a copy of the letter and any replies in a company filing cabinet.


    It's crappy that the company have given the address to someone else, but it's theirs to do with as they please.

    The email address itself is the employee's personal data though as it contains the person's name. Odd decision by the company and one that might have been sorted out differently by adding a middle initial or putting the name in a different format.


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    #22
    whomitconcerns
    Registered Users Posts: 4,309 ✭✭✭whomitconcerns


    I've never heard of this happen in any company multinational or otherwise, and speaking to some it colleagues, they never have done this either..

    Sounds very weird and possibly a mistake on the it departments side. Your friend should speak with their it department straight away


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    #23
    Lumen
    Registered Users Posts: 31,008 ✭✭✭✭Lumen


    whomitconcerns wrote: »
    I've never heard of this happen in any company multinational or otherwise, and speaking to some it colleagues, they never have done this either..
    I have! It used to be very common, maybe still is but I haven't had a proper job in years.

    My recommendation would be to leave the company. Take it as a sign of overinflated management egos and GTFO.

    Failing that, identify the key accounts to be switched over and deal with them on a case by case basis. Github allows a new address to be registered without cocking up the contributions history.

    If those accounts include porn etc then I revert to my first suggestion.


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    #24
    lawred2
    Registered Users Posts: 24,270 ✭✭✭✭lawred2


    10000maniacs wrote: »
    A collegue of mine in an American multinational company has been kicked off his email address he has used for years because a new senior manager has joined the company with the same name. My collegue has been working there for over 10 years and has numerous accounts associated with the email address. Any legal suggestions with this case?

    That's stupid. They should have used a middle initial to differentiate between the two.

    Sure he'll be in countless contacts list with that email address. How are they to know that it is no longer reaching there intended recipient?


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    #25
    Franz Von Peppercorn II
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,398 ✭✭✭Franz Von Peppercorn II


    Vetch wrote: »
    The email address itself is the employee's personal data though as it contains the person's name. Odd decision by the company and one that might have been sorted out differently by adding a middle initial or putting the name in a different format.

    There’s nothing personal about a work email account. It’s for work purposes only. However GDPR rules seem to mean that any monitoring should be explained beforehand and business related.

    https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/work/rights-at-work/basic-rights-and-contracts/monitoring-at-work/


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    #26
    Franz Von Peppercorn II
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2,398 ✭✭✭Franz Von Peppercorn II


    Carawaystick wrote: »
    Its the workers data
    Personal data are any information which are related to an identified or identifiable natural person
    .

    Is fairly common for people to quote this as if it subsequently means that GDPR makes any such data unusable by the company. It’s merely defining what personal data is, it doesn’t say it can’t be used for business purposes.


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    #27
    Vetch
    Closed Accounts Posts: 422 ✭✭Vetch


    Franz Von Peppercorn II wrote: »
    There’s nothing personal about a work email account. It’s for work purposes only. However GDPR rules seem to mean that any monitoring should be explained beforehand and business related.

    https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/work/rights-at-work/basic-rights-and-contracts/monitoring-at-work/

    I didn't say that the work email account was personal; what I wrote was that the email address is personal data. It contains the employee's name and has become associated with that person.

    That said, I don't use my work email account for my personal dealings but it still contains my personal data as it contains emails relating to my leave, payroll, performance management documents etc etc. Suspect this is the case with many people.

    I don't see how monitoring has anything to do with this.


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    #28
    Vetch
    Closed Accounts Posts: 422 ✭✭Vetch


    Franz Von Peppercorn II wrote: »
    Is fairly common for people to quote this as if it subsequently means that GDPR makes any such data unusable by the company. It’s merely defining what personal data is, it doesn’t say it can’t be used for business purposes.

    Correct - but the company still has to ensure that its use of personal data is legitimate in terms of Data Protection law.


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    #29
    Eire Go Brach
    Registered Users Posts: 1,368 ✭✭✭Eire Go Brach


    Don’t think it’s a GDPR issue. Stupid decision though. Does not make any sense.
    The new person won’t see any older emails of the original owner. They are 2 separate accounts
    It will confuse the hell out of colleagues and anyone emailing externally.


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    #30
    AndrewJRenko
    Registered Users Posts: 28,372 ✭✭✭✭AndrewJRenko


    Eire Go Brach wrote: »
    Don’t think it’s a GDPR issue. Stupid decision though. Does not make any sense.
    The new person won’t see any older emails of the original owner. They are 2 separate accounts
    It will confuse the hell out of colleagues and anyone emailing externally.
    If lots of people are replying to emails originally sent by person A and those replies are now received by person B, there could be data protection or GDPR issues involved.


    It's a really dumb decision by the company - very poor email management practice. It smacks of a decision made by someone who hasn't got a clue about technology, and an IT dept that doesn't have the respect of management to be able to push back.


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    #31
    Lumen
    Registered Users Posts: 31,008 ✭✭✭✭Lumen


    There is a legitimate issue with people making assumptions that john.doe@megacorp.com is one particular John Doe.

    So one way around this is to change the alias on the original account and set up an autoresponder, that replies with something like:

    ----
    There are now two John Does in MegaCorp.

    Please update your address book as follows:

    john.b.doe@megacorp.com Global Vice Chimp
    john.r.doe@megacorp.com Software Engineering Ninja Class 3

    Insincere regards etc..
    ---

    That way it's impossible for the wrong person to be targetted. It also scales as more John Does join the company, just update the autoresponder.

    Plus, the Global Vice Chimp gets to appear first on the list.


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