A new government report from the office of the e-envoy Andrew
Pinder has warned that public sector IT managers should implement a
clear and open policy in relation to monitoring electronic
communications.
A spokeswoman for the Cabinet Office said the guide, Electronic
Communications at Work: What you need to know, was aimed at the
public sector but could prove useful to industry on the whole. "The
guidance is intended for central government departments and
agencies, and to set an example to the wider public sector," she
said.
Confirming that the report had been produced in consultation with
the information commissioner, the spokeswoman added, "If industry
was to consider its recommendations, that would be a positive
step."
Iain Bourne, a spokesman for the information commissioner, said,
"It is the best, punchiest, clearest version of advice on using
electronic communications we have seen. The new guide complies with
a lot of new legislation and is more explicit about how to procure
any relevant information properly than the 1999 version."
The guide gives advice on new legislation covering privacy issues
such as the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act and the Human
Rights Act. Among the major recommendations in the guide is
establishing a "policy on the use of electronic communications at
work which sets out clearly to staff the circumstances in which
they may or many not use departmental telephone systems, e-mail and
the Internet".
The guide advises IT departments considering how to proceed with
surveillance of staff e-mail and Internet usage to tread carefully.
Monitoring "must be lawful, fair, necessary and proportionate to
achieving the business purpose," it says.
It goes on to explain that before any e-mail or Internet access
monitoring takes place, users need to establish the business
requirement for carrying out such monitoring. "You must ask
yourself why you need to monitor," it states.
Electronic Communications at Work: What you need to know is
available at
www.e-envoy.gov.uk.