Renske's (24) boss secretly read personal emails
I had an unpleasant experience in my previous job. I have another job now, but I still keep thinking about it. Especially because I wonder if I was wrong or my boss.
It was the first job after my study. It took an effort to get used to the transition to working life. However, the colleagues were kind, and I felt at ease. The atmosphere was informal, and we regularly went for drinks, all of us together. I thought that was very cool, because it was not really pleasant at home. I was living with my then-girlfriend, but we had many issues.
I occasionally sent an email from my work email.
My family and friends were worried about me. That is why I occasionally sent an email. I did that from my work email. Because at the office I felt freer than at home. And I did not want my girlfriend to see apps or things on my telephone. That is why it seemed safer to me to contact my family and friends from my work email.
My boss suddenly greeted me with hakuna matata.
I did not give it much thought, until my boss suddenly greeted me with ‘hakuna matata’ at the end of a working day. Gee, that is a coincidence, I thought. I had used that as closing words in an email to a friend, as a joke. And there were more similar examples. Until I thought, this is not a coincidence. For weeks, my boss had been reading everything I shared with family and friends through my work email – there really was no other possibility.
It was really an unpleasant period for me at home, so I shared my sorrow, fears, and mental breakdowns. And my boss was secretly reading all of this. While he was sitting at his desk close to me. He could have brought up the subject with me – I would have liked to hear it if did something that was actually not done. But now it was sort of left aside. I really did not know what to do about it.
Creepy that my boss has read all those personal things.
Not much later, my girlfriend and I broke up. That was the moment for me to do what I had always wanted to do: travel. I quit my job and left. All by myself. It was so cool, the best selfcare you could think of. Once back in the Netherlands, I found a new job fairly soon. Fortunately, I no longer have relation issues to email about. But when I think back to my previous job... I think it is rather creepy that my boss has read all those personal things. Now I think: that is not allowed without a good reason, is it?
Did you know that…
- Employers are allowed to set conditions to the private use of email, internet and business telephone at work? Or forbid some types of use? But then they will have to inform their employees clearly about this in advance. For example, with rules of conduct or a protocol. When drawing up such rules, employers have to be aware that employees are entitled to a certain degree of privacy at their work.
- Employers are also allowed to check compliance by their employees with those rules? But only if they have communicated in advance that checks are possible. And if they observe the conditions for monitoring employees.
- A covert (surreptitious) check is almost never allowed? This is subject to very strict conditions.
- Employers who do not draw up guidelines for private use of means of communication cannot forbid private use at all? Employees are entitled to a certain degree of privacy at their work. But they should have some sense of moderation, of course. Which also means, for example, not watching inappropriate or illegal content on the Internet.
- Employers are allowed to check the mail of employees if they are absent for a prolonged period, for example because of a holiday or sickness? When doing so, the employer has to refrain from reading the private email of the employee as far as possible. Does, for example, the title of a message indicate that the email is personal? Then the employer is not allowed to read that message.
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* The privacy stories on this website are based on actual reports to the Autoriteit Persoonsgegevens. Due to the privacy of those involved, the personal data and some circumstances have been changed. We use models (stock photography) for the images in these stories.
Why is protecting personal data so important? These people talk about what happened to them.