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Original poster

Advice

179 replies

SlightlyfreakedouT1 · 29/07/2017 21:17

I was sacked this week. The week before I made a complaint to my boss that the company IT man had been logging onto my worktop whilst I was using it at home. My friends husband (who runs an IT company)confirmed this by looking at the logs for the remote access.

What I did not realise is that the IT man in question is my ex-bosses brother in law. I am unsure if this is a criminal offence or not and whether I should pursue it?

OP posts:
Mychildcouldnotbreaatfeed · 30/07/2017 11:07

Anyone who uses work computers or phones for personal stuff has to realise in this day and age that the can be monitored, surely?

AlternativeTentacle · 30/07/2017 11:13

Yes but you wouldn't expect someone to be watching you whilst you work or are at home. Which I think is well over the mark.

Mychildcouldnotbreaatfeed · 30/07/2017 11:14

On a work laptop I'd expect to always be monitored. But my work makes that clear in its policies. That work laptop and phone are monitored at any time.

SpartacusSaiman · 30/07/2017 11:17

I am not saying it ok. Or it fine. I said they screwed her

I am weighing up wether its worth OP pursuing it. Especially when she has given them so much ammunition.

If there are as bent as the OP says they probably do have her signiture on something that says she did get the policy. Or it was actually in her contract.

It sounds like an awful company and the OP is better off out of it. If she wants to pursue this, then she should. But she needs to be realistic about what it will mean and the fact that its not going to be an open and shut case.

Mychildcouldnotbreaatfeed · 30/07/2017 11:19

Take the monitoring out if it.

She lied. She faked sick to go to an interview.

We would be dismissed for that or at least a written warning.

SpartacusSaiman · 30/07/2017 11:20

Yes but you wouldn't expect someone to be watching you

I dont thibk the op knows if he was actaully watching. Again, she would need to prove that.

Mychildcouldnotbreaatfeed · 30/07/2017 11:21

Also. Calling another work person a perv on a work laptop - come on !!

When you've seen teamview pop up?

Not very bright, is it?

Original poster
SlightlyfreakedouT1 · 30/07/2017 11:23

Thank you for the replies. I have literally been feeling really sick about it since I found out. The Guardian article is interesting and makes me think that maybe I should go to the police or a solicitor and see what they say. I am not bothered about being dismissed as I was looking to leave anyway what bothers me is that I have been dismissed because he does not want me to have access to the lap top where all the 'proof' of what went on can be found. Also, the monitoring was excessive. On one occasion, a girl in the office who obviously had access to the vehicle tracking site commented on my weekend activities that I hadnt even mentioned.

OP posts:
Mychildcouldnotbreaatfeed · 30/07/2017 11:25

I don't think you'll get anywhere going to police and solicitor. You need to se what you've signed in ur contract first. Can you see if you have legal cover in your house insurance?

SolomanDaisy · 30/07/2017 11:26

All OP has done is potentially breach work use of IT policies. She's been sacked anyway, so that's pretty irrelevant. The IT guy on the other hand has potentially broken the law by using the laptop to watch the OP semi-naked. OP, go to the police.

Evalina · 30/07/2017 11:29

The time off ill for an interview is not the issue here. If the OP discovered she'd been spied on then arguably that would have made her feel sick. If her employer wanted to take disciplinary action against her then yes they could, with evidence of course. Oh wait that evidence was in her personal emails which would lend weight to the OP's claim that she was being spied upon illegally.

Either way nothing excuses the employer's behaviour here, and if it was me I'd be pursuing this, not with any hope of getting my job back but to make them realise how out of order they are.

Original poster
SlightlyfreakedouT1 · 30/07/2017 11:31

I know it wasn't very bright of me to call him a perv but at that stage I hadn't realised he was on there. I appreciate the monitoring - cctv and listening devices in the offices and the vehicle tracking but feel like I have been violated when he has logged on when I had the lap top switched on at home. It's like he entered the room and instead of announcing his arrival he crept in and stood quietly behind the curtains. I have 3 children and it's not just my privacy he invaded but theirs too.

OP posts:
Autumnchill · 30/07/2017 11:31

I think it might be an idea to pop into your local police station and ask for advice.

Assuming you no longer have the laptop so no evidence but you don't know if this has happened before plus there has definitely been an invasion of your privacy regardless of policy.

SolomanDaisy · 30/07/2017 11:31

Nobody's contract allows IT to be a peeping Tom. Her contract is irrelevant to his behaviour.

SpartacusSaiman · 30/07/2017 11:33

The op has done more than enough to satisfy dismissal.

Lots of misue of IT property, calling in sick for an interview, calling the IT guy a perv on a work laptop etc.

She has no proof of anything.

The reason they sacked her could be sonething they could possible peruse. But having only been there 9 months, probably not. She has no proof he used the webcam either.

I am not saying its ok. Its absolutely not. But i cant say i think its worth pursuing if i dont think it is.

All the op has got is 'i have just been sacked. The companies IT man may have been perving on me but i have no proof'.

SpartacusSaiman · 30/07/2017 11:36

Op honestly, ehat he has done is horrifying. And really worrying. Tbh montioring at home is one of thevreason i only use my laptop in the kitchen and for work. I have never had a hint of this sort of behaviour at work. But its always been a fear of mine because i know they can monitor anything. I also have my webcam taped over at home unless i use it.

But your case isnt clear cut. And you need to decide wether its worth your stress and time. And if it goes against you, what impact it could have on your career.

Evalina · 30/07/2017 11:39

Using a work computer does not permit an employer to breach your privacy, any more than buying a smart TV allows the manufacturer to watch you sitting on your sofa and listen to your conversations. It's really quite concerning how blasé some people are about this. OP you will probably struggle to prove anything but that shouldn't stop you trying..

Mychildcouldnotbreaatfeed · 30/07/2017 11:40

If the op has signed something in her contract to say they will be monitoring the work laptop then they are of course allowed to monitor it. It's not the same as a smart tv.

And this is why my work laptop and phone are in a bag in the cupboard under my stairs if I'm not using them for work related stuff.

I don't even use work wifi for my own personal phone.

Original poster
SlightlyfreakedouT1 · 30/07/2017 11:42

Mt daughters friend said that I should contact my internet service provider and request a log of the incoming traffic, he said they will give me this if I get a crime reference number off the police. He's not a policeman but he does work for the police force. Do you think this is worth doing? Also, the IT man in question does have a record although I'm not sure what for - my ex boss told me once that he had visited him in an open prison. Whilst I do not have any proof, I do have my friends husband who would testify to seeing the logs - logs that show he was on my laptop saturday nights, sunday mornings, after 11pm during the week etc.

OP posts:
Bluntness100 · 30/07/2017 11:45

I think you're onto a sticky wicket here. If you hadn't been using it for personal use it would have made no difference if he was on there. If you were solely using it for work it would have made no difference at all. It's also up to the company owners who they allow access to, it's their computers and they permitted it.

Your thinking is wrong, it's as if you think it was your personal computer and he was violating your privacy by logging on. It wasn't. It's a company computer and if the owner allowed him full access to their equipment that's their call and fully acceptable. If you think about it in the way he had as much right to access it as you then you might see why your thought process is wrong.

Your complaint is you think he was using it for personal reasons, but you have no evidence if this is true, however they do have evidence you were.

You need to stop thinking it was yours and think of it as a piece of company equipment you both had full rights to use.

The same with the car. Many companies do this and it's their equipment and you accept they track, it's your choice to use it for personal use also. They do not have to stop tracking because you wish to use it personally.

If you wish to use company equipment for your personal life you will need to accept the company has full rights over them. They are not yours, any more than the stationary cupboard, the building, or the chair is.

Mychildcouldnotbreaatfeed · 30/07/2017 11:45

And he will say he had to do updates outside of normal working hours.

I honestly think you're on a hiding to nothing with this.

But if you are going to pursue it then you'd be best to go via a union or house insurance as it'll be expensive.

Bluntness100 · 30/07/2017 11:46

ogs that show he was on my laptop saturday nights, sunday mornings, after 11pm during the week

You need to change this sentence to read

"Logs that show he was on the company laptop saturday nights, sunday mornings, after 11pm during the week*

As said it's not yours, it's theirs and they can give anyone they wish access to it at any time.

SpartacusSaiman · 30/07/2017 11:48

A friend saying he saw something on a laptop that he shouldnt have been on in the first place, isnt really evidence OP.

If you want to get advice. You should.

Mychildcouldnotbreaatfeed · 30/07/2017 11:50

your friend committed an offence by looking at the work laptop without oersomissom. He breached dpa. Are you really wanting to throw I'm under a bus?

Original poster
SlightlyfreakedouT1 · 30/07/2017 11:51

And regards ruining my career - saying that my figures didnt add up was a blatant lie and could ruin any job prospects I have for the future. If I need a reference now I am wondering what they will say. As I left with 5 minutes notice I had no opportunity to take any evidence of anything. I have a letter from them for my initial job offer that shows my salary and commission rate and I have pay slips that show my commission was really high and increasing month on month so I could show this as evidence that my sales performance was not lacking maybe.
A few people are mentioning contracts - I was never given, shown or signed any contracts for anything. They didn't even have a health and safety policy for me to sign despite the fact that a fork lift truck was driving all over the place all day.

OP posts: