Stealth Employee Monitoring Software

Be Transparent About Employee Activity Monitoring

Employees that are not aware that they are being monitored, why they are being monitored, and how they are being monitored are less likely to find the use of employee computer monitoring software acceptable.

CurrentWare’s employee and computer monitoring software solutions can be deployed with an optional stealth mode or configured to periodically notify employees that they are being monitored.

• Turn on BrowseReporter’s End Users Reports feature to give employees access to their data. This gives them the autonomy to monitor their own productivity.
• Disclose the scope of employee monitoring during onboarding and within company policies.
• Make sure employees understand how data is being collected, what data is being collected, and how it will be used.

Ensure Confidentiality & Privacy for the Employees Involved

While complete confidentiality cannot be guaranteed for all employees involved, the workplace investigation process must be conducted with as much confidentiality as possible for the parties involved.

Any monitoring or data collection should be conducted in compliance with applicable laws and regulations, as well as in accordance with the employer’s policies and procedures.

Additionally, it is essential to maintain the confidentiality of sensitive information and respect the privacy rights of employees during the investigation.

Consult With Legal Counsel

When it comes to workplace privacy, both the employee and the employer have rights that vary based on the jurisdiction of the company, as well as any relevant collective bargaining agreements.

Before monitoring employee computer activity for workplace investigations, be certain to consult with legal counsel to understand what employment laws apply to your organization and what steps you must take to monitor employees lawfully. 

At a minimum your legal team will recommend a Workplace Monitoring Policy that outlines what data is collected and how it will be used. 

How to Increase Buy-in for Employee Monitoring

• Consult your employees. Involve a representative sample of employees to ensure that their voices are heard. Allow them to voice any concerns they have regarding your use of employee computer monitoring software.
• Do not track more than necessary. Only collect, store, and use the types of data that are adequate and relevant for the stated purposes. Overly invasive monitoring methods such as capturing individual keystrokes and webcam feeds are highly likely to infringe on employee privacy rights unless there is a legitimate business need that cannot be adequately met through less invasive methods.
• Limit access to employee monitoring data. Restricting access to monitoring data to a “need to know” basis limits opportunities for misuse. Use CurrentWare’s operator permissions to password protect the console and limit who has access to certain features.

Protect Employee Monitoring Data From Misuse

Employee monitoring data can be sensitive. Organizations need to ensure that administrative and technical security measures are in place to prevent data from being misused or leaked to unauthorized parties.

• Password-protect employee data. The CurrentWare Console can be password protected to limit who has access to employee computer activity data.
• Limit data access. With CurrentWare's Operator Accounts you can provide a manager with access to their department's data without providing them with the data of other departments. You can also use the email reports feature to automatically send data about specific users/PCs on a regular basis.
• Only use employee computer activity data for its intended purpose. If employees consent to their data being collected for the purpose of enforcing acceptable use policies it is critical that it is not reappropriated for another purpose without their explicit and informed consent.

Only Monitor What is Needed

Employee monitoring is unique for every organization, and yours is no exception. 

When you monitor your employees the best practice is to only monitor what is needed to meet your organization’s goals. 

Rather than monitoring every single action your employees take without a clear reason to do so, you should map your clearly defined goals to the data points you need to collect in order to meet them.

This ensures that the monitoring methods used are as minimally invasive as is needed to meet your goals. You’ll also improve buy-in by clearly demonstrating the intended purpose of the monitoring.

Get Informed Consent From Monitored Employees

When implementing an employee monitoring solution, get explicit and informed consent from your employees that they are going to be monitored.

Even if there are no laws that specifically require that you disclose to employees that they are being monitored, it is the best practice to do so anyway. 

How in-depth you explain the process is up to the discretion and unique needs of your organization, however it is best to be as open as possible and have your employees read and sign an employee monitoring policy.

Combine the Insights With Other Workplace Investigation Techniques

Workplace investigations require thorough documentation and evidence before a final decision is made and corrective action is implemented. 

While workplace investigation software is critical to the investigation process it is most effective when combined with traditional investigative techniques.

• Gather Other Evidence: Combine computer activity data with any information you already have, such as an employee complaint, a supervisor’s report, written statements from witnesses, or written warnings.
• Conduct Interviews: Interview witnesses, the involved parties, and other employees that may have insights into the alleged conduct. Gather all relevant information in thorough notes.