Subject Access Request Reveals Bosses Snooping on Private Social Media Messages

[Jon_bhoy79]

Hi,

I was recently made redundant without consultation. This issue is heading to tribunal and as such, I made a Subject Access Request specifically to uncover the mechanics on how I was selected etc. Unsurprisingly, the company failed to comply only sending emails to and from me. However, contained within the data key was one word document that shows a screen grab of my personal linked in taken AFTER I had left.

They must have accessed via the company issued laptop. The company does not have a social media policy in the contract or employee handbook.

The conversation they've selected is between me and a friend who is encouraging me to take legal action. My response is about winning clients back (contrary to my restrictive covenant) when I get new employment (a threat?) but I think its safe to presume they've had unrestricted access to all my messages since January and access to other personal sites contained on the laptop.

On exit, I though I had logged out of everything but I was literally bundled out of the door without ceremony so perhaps not.

Can any one advise if accessing an employee's personal social media messages is legal AFTER they've been dismissed and what action I can take for redress please?

Thanks in advance.

Mon the Group

Jon

[Jon_bhoy79]

Hi

Just a wee update on this issue.

I've received a letter from my old firms legal reps who have stated that they were in their right to access my private social media messages as the links to the platform were sent to my old work email address.

If the message body had been visible in the email, I'd accept this. However, to access the messages they had to follow links which to my (limited) knowledge would appear to be deliberately bypassing the security of someones personal accounts which are held on data servers not owned by the company and subsequently outwith the scope of monitoring/email policy?

Anyone got any views on this?

Thanks

Jon

[ULA]

Your company may not have had a social media policy but was there anything about personal use of company property/use of the internet for personal use during company working hours/monitoring communications you make from a work device or anything else of a similar nature?

[Jon_bhoy79]

Hi Ula

Thanks for taking the time to reply to my post. In the handbook there is an email monitoring and internet usage policy. However, the messages that my former employers shared in the SARS are all from AFTER I had been dismissed so were not composed on their internet system or on any of their devices.

I'm guessing I've either been unsuccessful in logging out of google and removing all my password access on my exit (I was bundled out literally!) or they've used keystroke monitoring to discover passwords. I'm prepared to give them the benefit that I was unsuccessful in removing my passwords from the company device but surely they still have no right of access (they have no social media policy at all) especially since I'm no longer an employee. I only discovered they had access some months later and only because I made the Subject Access Request.

ICO seem hesitant to make a judgement either way despite the company refusing to comply with information requests, and only today I insisted this has been going too long (since Jan) and there must be a mechanism for me to push for a decision.

This appears to be a grey area within a rapidly developing area of law and searching online, there are no similar cases of private messages, DM's, Inmails etc for private accounts.

Any insight in how this is likely to play out would be very welcome.