to refuse to have my photo on the intranet at work?

[wowfudge]

I've received an email today which says the company I work for is setting up an intranet page for HQ (where I work) which will have everyone's name, job role and contact details on it and we are to provide a suitable photo to go on there. The purpose is so that those people in the wider company who have dealings with us can put a face to a name. We've been given a deadline to comply with this.

I am really not comfortable with this as I don't really know why anyone I only deal with over the phone or by email gives a monkeys what I look like or what difference it makes. When employees from around the company visit here, they tend to seek out the people they deal with and introduce themselves. I also have concerns that someone could use my photo for some other purpose without my knowledge. Plus I am not confident about my looks at the moment and don't want my fat face on there for all to see.

What do you think MNetters? Does anyone in HR know what my rights are on this? I feel pressurised to do something I don't want to do and would like to know how to deal with it.

No, you're right. You just don't know what might happen. But what do you think will happen? If you are going to be stalked or harassed by someone at your work, it won't be because of your picture on the intranet. If you are going to be stalked or harassed by someone outwith your work, they won't be able to find your picture because it's on a secure internal site. And yes, OK, some joker might take a terrible screen grab and post it to grindr. But then you get them sacked. And as they will attach it to a fake profile, it will have no connection to you in real life.

But I suppose everyone has to be comfortable with their own levels of risk.

Some people are just more private than others, and try to find reasons to explain their objection.

Maybe the OP realises that stalking is unlikely but feels she needs to justify her uneasiness about having her photo on display.

OP, is it not enough to just say you feel uncomfortable about this? I would have thought any reasonable employer would respect your feelings.

Blistory: We get that there are stalkers, and malicious exes. We get the need for privacy on one's own terms. We know we need to protect ourselves on the WWW.

The OP seems to think that all of the above are going to suck her soul through the mugshot on the company intranet.

Hey! What if the soul sucking hammer wielding whackster also works on payroll! He can run off with her money as well as wank over her photo.

You seem determined to turn the thread into the perils-of-the-internet-ladies-beware.

The OP, on the other hand, unable to come up with one valid reason why it's a problem, seems determined to turn it into a neh neh I don't like being told what to do thing. Which, er, will ensure she goes a long way in her chosen career. not

OP, is your main issue that you don't like your appearance in photos?

My DSis is the same. It's not having the photo up somewhere, it's just that she hates how she looks in them and refuses to have her picture taken.

I used to do professional airbrushing work for magazines (quite a while ago, I don't do it as part of my work anymore apart from the odd freelance favour) and she has sometimes asked me to do her. Not so extreme that she looks like a totally different person, but so she looks a few stone lighter, smoother skin, better definition of features etc. it's helped her feel a bit more confident when she has needed a picture for something.

If you want I'll do a photo for you. Just PM me if you want me to (obviously free!). Sorry this isn't a wider offer to anyone else though.

I've given three reasons why I don't want my photo on there. All of them are perfectly valid. Just because you disagree with any or all of those doesn't make them any less valid as reasons.

None of those reasons is 'the main reason', it's a combination of reasons which is making me reluctant.

Some posters have concentrated on particular aspects of what I've stated rather than looking at what I've posted as a whole.

I will push back on this at work, without drama, because it should be down to personal choice.

I think it is because to most posters the reasons in themselves don't seem to be particularly strong enough to warrant being anonymous.

What do you do at meetings or when people from other parts of the company visit? Hide under the desk or don an IRA style balaclava in order to protect your identity?

ComposHat that really wasn't necessary

Bunbaker - there's been a pretty equal split in response to my post so I'm not sure where you are getting that most posters don't think the reasons are strong enough? Sure those who disagree have done so vehemently and repeatedly, but it's not the same thing.

Also, it's not about anonymity - it's about adding my photo to other information which is already there.

I didn

Snipping tool is a standardoffice program.that can screen grab whole screens or portions of.snd then save it as a image.

I wasn't trying to be snide (well a bit maybe) but alao trying to illustrate that if you work with other people you can't remain completely anonymous from them. It isn't hound the company's responsibility to facilitate that.

I meant to most of the posters who think you are overthinking it.

You can disable right click in photos so that people can't do a direct copy and paste. Obviously that can be got round by a screen dump, but if you work with someone who is that keen to get hold of a picture of you they would be able to even if you weren't on an intranet site. They could take a picture of you with their phone for example.

My company posts photos of everyone on the intranet when they start. It's the security shot and there is no choice. Most people's pictures aren't great, and they only get renewed every five years, so if you were having a bad hair day then it's just tough (you do get to see the pic when it's taken though). I really don't see the big deal, it seems just a little paranoid.

YABU
My photo is on our company's website, with my name and details about me.
We also have ID cards that we have to wear with our photos on.
Our photos were done by a professonal and he used a computer program to airbrush us- we look so much better
I guess you don't have facebook then?

I think you should be able to refuse and you should not have to explain why. My gut feel is there is an age division here. Younger people, heavier users of social media see no problem. Those (older) who still have some privacy left to protect are not so happy.

Politely say that you are not happy with it 'for personal reasons'.

The arguments used against you do not take into account your own personal gut feelings, which to me are important.

Yabu.

I find people who think up scenarios where their photo could be stolen and misused quite self obsessed.

If yiu think of the millions of photos online and then decide that there is a reasonable risk that your work mugshot is going to be misused in some way then I would say your paranoid.

I would think it would be more likely that someone would take a photo of you whilst your doing something unflattering and upload it to the internet. Maybe you should wear Michael Jackson style masks at all time to protect your identity.

No one else will care about your photo, your face is the face yiu wear everyday, your colleagues will know if youhave a fat face, they don't need a photo to confirm it.

On age: how do you think older people coped with the introduction of conference calling, email, computers...? Times change, norms at work change and people have to adapt. Obviously that doesn't mean blindly following any dictat, but this doesn't seem to me to be a gross infringement of individual rights.

So OP, what'll you do when they say "sorry, it's company policy. We've decided it fits in with our approachable, friendly outlook". They're not actually asking anything unreasonable, but failure to comply when the majority of others do can be noted.

The fact that all your other information is already on there, including your bank details (unless you get paid cash) will remove any arguement you have about your picture - because it' arguably the least important bit of that information.

No one needs your picture to steal your identity or to stalk you. If (for whatever reason) a colleague wants to add you to a dating site they're more likely to use your real name & details and a picture of a stunner - you'd get more replies that way!!

I think you need to "get with it", calm down & dig out a pic you're happy with - otherwise you'll end up with a duffer that someone donates....

I do prefer to be private - yes, there are those people who think nothing of splashing every last detail of their lives all over the place from 'private' individuals on FB to Z listers in magazines and newspapers, but I feel things have gone to far. No one has the right to such information about others.

I don't want to share my photo at work.

I recently got asked the same thing and have so far been ignoring it. I work in a very male orientated environment and in the last company I worked for one of the favourite past times of some men was to go through the companies intranet and rate the women based on their photos! I found out my ranking by accident when someone left their email open on a shared PC but it has left me feeling less then happy about providing a photo for my present company and I would be pretty miffed if people thought I was being 'weird' for refusing.
So I agree with the OP how I look has nothing to do with how I do my job.

too far

I think you'd be better off discussing with your management just what they are going to do to ensure that these photos are treated with a proper degree of respect. When you log onto your PC, or start up your intranet, is there any kind of security policy message which comes up? Some places make you read through and OK something about 'proper use/misuse' of company data. Wording could be added there. Equally a 'staff notice' or whatever you have could be sent round explaining what people may and may not do with photos (and other information).

I agree there could be misuse - but it is the responsibility of management to point out to everyone that it would be a potential disciplinary offence.

My organisation has photos on the intranet, and a lot of data about people - all of which is (meant to be) restricted to those who have a genuine need to see it. I'm in IT and we take it very seriously, making sure that the right info is available to the right people, and no-one else. Likewise, we get seriously-worded messages from time to time, reminding us that we all have a responsibility to treat data appropriately.

Thanks AMum - I've done some research on the law regarding this and there are a number of practical steps I think the company needs to take with regard to data protection and so on.

I get your drift.I would hate this too. I would agree to it, though, reluctantly, or look for another job.

I do not see why having a picture of an employee adds anything to a business. I think it's a part of a trend for everyone to have to be seen to be "out there", and nothing more.

It's not in the public domain, so perhaps you are overreacting a bit, but this trend for pointing cameras at everyone regardless of their willingness or awareness is unwelcome, in my view.

From a company policy point of view, if there are workers who are exempt from having their photo taken then that exemption should apply to all employees.If one group, or one person has the right to remain unphotographed then so should you.

Company policy need not be set in stone, after all.

But