AIBU to wetransfer some useful files before I leave my job?

[Hairybaker]

It’s my last day on Friday and there are some pieces of work that I created that I would find useful in future. Im not going to a competitor so won’t be used directly but more as a template /reminder.

Obviously I’m aware that the rules are that you shouldn’t do this.

I don’t want to email them to my personal folder or upload to a usb as that can be tracked. But can a wetransfer be tracked easily!?

My work has systems in place to stop you doing this, I guess you could still take home paper copies but everything is digital so printing out a load of documents would be a bit suspicious. I'm horrified at what Battleneck claims to have done and would assume that's illegal.

In my sector (professional services) doing this can and has led to the leaving employee facing legal action.

Every email - traced.
Every zipped file - traced.
Every USB download - traced.
Every document printed - traced.
Every screenshot - traced.

The tracing starts from when you hand in your notice, and for some staff applied retrospectively so files emailed/downloaded/printed/screenshot in the weeks and months prior to handing in notice were also reviewed.

I’ve had to conduct several interviews with leaving staff in which I quietly advised them to give back everything they had, for their own good.

I suspect that taking a photo on a non-work mobile phone might work, but I wouldn’t even have risked that with my former employer!

There's a reason why many places show you the door the minute you hand up your notice. Nothing personal!

In my company, the IT department would be well aware that you are living and would routinely keep an eye on what you are doing.

I won't go into more details and tell people how to go round that!

I wouldn't do it in my role. I'd face legal action if caught.

Nope, my friend got sacked for doing this.

Just don't, they aren't yours

I did this all the time when contracting - better to do as you go along though, if you leave it all to the last day/week they will notice/complain.

If you've already resigned, it's too late.

I took down a few notes about solutions I'd implemented before, but if a new company wants me to do something similar, then that's what they're paying me for!

Besides, the exact work is less likely to be useful than you, think, but it could be worth reminding yourself of the skills and knowledge you used to create them.

(I had a bit of a wobble saying goodbye to some of my more brilliant creations, but it didn't make them any more useful)

I work for a big company.

Once an employee has resigned we track everything.

The last person who left with company material was served with an injunction and the police were involved. Their new employer was also informed.

Good lord.

I totally and completely take for granted how relaxed, generous and collaborative my company is.

Threads like this are a real eye-opener.

My company does track files like that. We recently had a contractor who emailed himself some "souvenir" files. It was really strange the stuff he took - wouldn't be useful as so specific to our team. But nonetheless legal action was threatened until he proved he deleted said files.
You may have signed something in your contract/NDA which actually covers this.

@penguinwithasuitcase

Good lord.

I totally and completely take for granted how relaxed, generous and collaborative my company is.

Threads like this are a real eye-opener.

Or you work in a company that is completely unprofessional and messy. No one can tell.

and businesses cannot afford to be so slack, for their own sake, their clients sake and to satisfy strict legal requirements.

It's breaks so many laws, contractual agreements, it's just not acceptable.

The furthest I would go is taking a photo on my phone. I wouldn’t download or transfer anything.

Usb stick and then wipe the hard drive

Photos on personal phone only.

USB transfers can be tracked but if you must I'd change the file names abs put passwords on it so it wouldn't arouse suspicion.

You can still get sacked for gross misconduct between now and Friday. And that is definitely what would happen where I work.

@PegasusReturns

I work for a big company.

Once an employee has resigned we track everything.

The last person who left with company material was served with an injunction and the police were involved. Their new employer was also informed.

The new employer may have known about it already...

I was once outright asked during an interview whether I had access to my current employer's client database that I could perhaps accidentally copy before I left.

The time to do this is before you hand your notice in.

The fact that you are trying to find a workaround to emailing it to yourself, suggests that you know it’s not allowed, and possibly that they will know you’re doing it.

We had a new employee bring lots of stuff with them and his previous employers sued him and my employer. There was a massive out of court settlement. They weren’t a particularly big company either.

@Hairybaker

No personal data involved. I am aware that the info is theirs legally even though I created it all.

The whole document is there's legally, they paid you to create it

This is an eye opener! Teachers generally swipe everything from everywhere

@myBumJuiceSmellsLikeRoses

Any files you create as part of your job are not your property.

How can you possibly say that without knowing individual contract details?

I have done this. Removed any company specific data, filled it with generic template info. Created a password protected zip file and emailed it to myself.

and even rang a colleague to get sent something a few weeks after I left

I know someone who got sacked for doing this. Nothing confidential, just a spreadsheet he had written. Went to a tribunal and he lost.

I would print them all out and, wearing a paper bag over my head to avoid being noticed, sidle over to the printer and stuff them down my front. Then nonchantley wander back to my desk (having removed the paper bag) and smile at my colleagues as I went making small talk, e.g. How's your dog now? nice hat! have you lost weight etc.
Perhaps I should mention it didn't work for me though, I had to give it all back including the hole punch and the stapler.

Definitely save as much as you can. As long as you’re not planning to divulge / share with others, it’s fine, I work for a corporate and most people do this. We break our backs for the company we should be able to re-use work.