Internet Privacy the Main Issue

Internet Privacy

The main issue that will be addressed here is whether Internet privacy is appropriate in the sense that it can and should be used to control or regulate what is done in the workplace. The focusing question on Internet privacy is this:

Is Internet privacy a right in the workplace or only a privilege?

The primary purpose of this paper is to explore the issue, argue a claim, and analyze a theory. Additional questions that will help with the research are:

Do most workplaces offer their employees Internet privacy?

Do companies that do not offer Internet privacy have a requirement to tell their employees?

Should employees ask about this when they are hired or only assume that they have no right to privacy on the Internet at work unless told otherwise?

The main thesis for this paper is that employees in a workplace do not enjoy Internet privacy while they are at work and that they should not expect it as a basic right.

The tested theory is that, overall, this thesis holds true and most companies that offer their employees the Internet at work or require them to use the Internet or email for business do not give them any expectation of privacy.

Personal feelings have shaped the way I feel because too many employees seem to think that the Internet is there at work for them to play with. When their employer looks to see where they have been or checks their emails to see what they have been doing, the employees react as though they are the offended parties. They seem to labor under the misguided belief that their work email addresses and business computers are personal property, which is not seen by many employers to be the case.

Internet Privacy

Ever since the Internet and email began to be widely used in the business world, employers have been monitoring their employees' email messages and what kinds of Websites they have been visiting on company time. While some employers are much more concerned than others, and therefore monitor their employees' activities more closely, all employers have the option to monitor their employees where the Internet is concerned. This is making some employees very nervous, but does it violate their rights? Some believe it does, and others see it as necessary for the proper functioning of business. The argument could go either way as to whether it is an invasion of privacy or a necessary evil, but looking at the issue from all angles is certainly important.

According to a relatively recent British news story, it is illegal to monitor employee's email and Internet usage without telling them that you are going to be doing do. The story states that covert monitoring may be acceptable in special circumstances, such as when a crime is thought to be being committed, but it is a bit of a gray area and therefore is open for interpretation as to what it acceptable monitoring and what is not. Under normal circumstances, though, it is not thought to be acceptable in that country. The most important thing for a company to do is to set out clear policies for Web and Email usage and let employees know up front whether they will be monitored so that there will not be any confusion in the future. Usually, employee monitoring can be limited to a record of the email traffic and the subject of those emails, without actually having to read the contents (Loney, 2002).

Because email and Internet have not been around for a long time in the grand scheme of things, the rules on what a person can and cannot do are still being created. Clearly, a set policy as well as laws, are needed so that no one's first amendment rights are being violated in any way. According to the first amendment, everyone has the right to freedom of speech. If employers are stopping people from saying what they want to during an email, then they are taking away that right, some people believe. Other people believe that employers have to draw the line somewhere, and not having email policies and Internet policies would cause employees to spend too much time with their computers, using them for their own personal enjoyment, and not enough time on productive company activities (Purdy, 2000).

According to the current laws, which are not really up to speed yet, an employer can monitor employee email if he or she has a legitimate business purpose for doing so. There is a belief that, because the employer has an email and computer system for employee use, the computer system (as well as the resulting email and browsing history) is the property of the employer. While this makes sense, some states have enacted 'right to privacy' laws so that companies cannot make this claim against their employees and cannot monitor what they do on the Internet during company time. It then becomes difficult to balance the need to supervise and control employees with the need to make sure that those same employees' rights are not being violated by their employers. There is no clear legal rule as to what is acceptable and what is not in the field of email or Internet monitoring in the workplace, which makes it very difficult for those who are trying to operate a business. Employers are left on their own to try to monitor their employees the best they can while making sure that they do not get too strict and get themselves into trouble with the courts (Boustani 2002).

The best thing that employers can do to protect themselves and keep their employees happy is to create good policies that deal with Internet usage and email, and then stick by them in all circumstances. It is also important that employers monitor their employees only for legitimate reasons, instead of just because they are nosy. If they have a suspicion that an employee is doing something wrong, monitoring them is understandable. Without the suspicion, though, it just seems as though an employer really is prying into an employee's private business. Another thing that the employer needs to do is to be realistic. If employees are in constant fear that they are being watched all of the time, they are not going to perform at the highest level they can because they will be too distracted by the idea of 'big brother' to really focus on their jobs (Monitoring 2002).