Employee Privacy: Work on Employee Property

It is not uncommon for employees to do work on their home computers or other devices. This subject must be addressed in the same manner as non-work hours and locations.

It is important that employees get prior approval before accessing any company data using their personal or home computers.

As I see it, the most glaring pitfall of permitting this practice is the possibility of some personal information of the employee's getting mixed in with the company data. For instance, a personal letter or photo getting into a report or something grossly inappropriate from the employee's data making its' way into a work document or email.

If the employee had prior  approval that would mitigate the circumstances except in the most extreme cases. If they do not have approval then the employee is solely responsible for any mishaps.

But here is a critical restriction. The employer has no right to intrude into the employee's personal data beyond that which is involved in the error.

Clearly the Best Practice is to restrict the performance of company work to company owned devices.

Lance