Employers can read workers' private messages sent via chat software and webmail accounts during working hours, judges have ruled.
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) said a firm that read a worker's Yahoo Messenger chats sent while he was at work was within its rights.
Judges said he breached the company's rules and that his employer had a right to check he was completing his work.
The judges said that unregulated snooping by employers would not be acceptable.
Replies sorted oldest to newest
Not surprising really, the way things are going. 
How are they going to read messages on web based services when the chat etc is stored in the cloud and servers which are not even UK based?
I would be surprised if this is actually legal, I know from personal experience that even when performing an investigation on seized mobile phones, tablets and computers you are not allowed to just go looking at every piece of communication.
For example, trying to get access to a person's Facebook is an absolute nightmare.
I don't think they'd find Mr Yogi's personal emails very interesting.
They are usually, "What's for tea?".
velvet donkey posted:They've got machines that make Enigma look like a ZX Spectrum Yogi. Best tell Mr Yogi to be more careful
I'll tell him.
I always thought they could but not a lot of them carry it out, they're well within their rights if you're using their equipment and you should be using your own equipment in their time either 
WHy would they want to do this?
Sorry if this is a naÃŊve question
I don't think Mrs Jer would ever be able to access them since she would have to ask me first.
Fair enough. I've never done social stuff on the firm's time or on the firm's networks/machines.
If you don't want to incriminate yourself, do it on your own time and your own hardware.
