Think Before You Click: Employers Could Violate Federal Law by Reading Employee Emails
The federal Stored Communications Act (SCA) protects the privacy of personal emails and social media accounts that employees may access with company-owned devices. It provides for both civil and potentially criminal penalties for violations. Quick Hits The federal Stored Communications Act prohibits employers from reading an employee’s personal emails and messages stored on third-party servers or networks. An employee or former employee might accidentally or unknowingly leave open apps or accounts with access to personal messages on a company-issued device. Employers need to balance workers’ privacy rights with business needs and company policies. Typically, when an employee voluntarily quits or is fired, the employer collects any laptops, phones, tablets, or other equipment owned by the employer. Employees often create bookmarks or links on these company-owned devices to their own email or other personal accounts. But what if at the time of termination an employee has inadvertently l...