Bewildered IT directors struggle with email laws

Differences between the Data Protection Commissioner's code of practice, the Human Rights Act and the Regulation of Investigatory Powers (RIP) Act means employers have been left with no clear understanding of which direction to take.

A particularly grey area surrounds employers' right to monitor email under RIP and employees' right to privacy as enshrined in the Human Rights Act.

The situation is so confused that Jonathan Tait, senior product marketing manager at Baltimore Technologies, advises companies to draw up their own legally binding policies to make sure employees know what they can and cannot do.

He said: "This is a huge problem for companies, especially since they are mutually exclusive pieces of legislation that have a knock-on effect on each other. The conflict within them puts huge pressure on employers."

He accused the government of failing to consider the practicalities of the laws.

"I am not convinced the government has thought about the impact this has on the industry. The three codes are contradictory but employers are left having to deal with it. Service providers are trying to do what is right but could be prosecuted for it.

"Look at Claranet. It could have been in trouble under RIP for trying to go into emails and clear out the Anna Kournakova virus. It was only doing the best for its customers," he added.

Martino Corbelli, director at Surf Control, agreed: "It is totally confusing. Everyone is in agreement that companies need their own policy, as this is the only thing that will give them any legal standing when there is a breach of conduct.

"The differences between RIP's code of practice, the Data Protection Commissioner's code of conduct and the Human Rights Act leaves a great big blank for employers."

One silicon.com reader said that "employers are left not knowing what is legal in respect of interception".

Large corporations are just as at risk as smaller companies with limited legal resources, warned Robert Bond, head of innovation and technology law at Hobson Audley.

"Multinationals have so many different departments that often one hand does not know what the other is doing to ensure everyone is complying with the laws."