Mitigating Liability from Employee Use of Technology

Employee abuse of employer-provided equipment has always created a potential for liability, but the advent of the computer and the Internet has significantly altered the landscape. What is new about today's electronic tools, and what increases the level of employer exposure, is the fact that these devices enable employees to have instantaneous access to the outside world. The difference between giving an employee a telephone or a computer with Internet access is like the difference between giving a hunter a pea shooter or an AK47. The likelihood of success is much greater with the AK47, but so is the risk of a significant mishap.

Technology-based claims against employers continue to increase. Initially, many of those claims were filed by employees alleging that employers violated their privacy rights by monitoring their electronic communications. The majority of courts have dismissed those claims, based on recognition of the need for employers to control their employees' activities and protect their business interests. The more recent, and less settled, area of concern for employers comes from claims by outside third parties who are 'damaged' by employees using company-provided computers. Two recent cases illustrate the divergent views, and outcomes, that these types of claims can have.