Nothing Personal: Survey of Computer Use at Work
Numerous surveys have documented the increasing number of companies that monitor their employees' e-mail and web-surfing activities and discipline employees who violate their company's "acceptable use" policy. Despite this level of surveillance, surveys have also shown that many employees continue to use their work computers for a wide range of personal activities — sending e-mail and instant messages (IMs), doing web searches and word-processing, etc. — almost as if they were doing so in the privacy of their own homes. Why?
The objective of the Survey of Computer Use at Work was to determine whether employees understand that most or all of their personal activities on work computers are really not personal — that is, they are likely being captured and archived on their company's servers, where they are subject to possible discovery in future litigation to the embarrassment (and potential liability) of both the employees and their companies. This issue is of particular importance in view of the recent amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, which establish new procedures for an orderly exchange of electronically stored information ("ESI") early in the litigation process, thus making it all the more likely that inappropriate e-mails, web searches, IMs and other ESI will come to light in pre-trial discovery.
To download the survey report or to listen to an audio analysis of the survey of 1,000 US workers, please complete the following form and click "Submit":
*Indicates required fields
|
