Workplace E-mail Monitoring in Germany

by Volker Teigelkötter and  Bettina Holzberger

In 2009, the German public was shaken by several scandals that revealed a number of international companies systematically, continuously and comprehensively monitored their employees’ personal data.  This included spying on employees’ private bank accounts and secretly observing employees in their offices via hidden video surveillance.

Even though the general Federal Data Protection Act (the BDSG) was effective at the time, the German Government came to the welcome conclusion that it was necessary to implement a data protection act dedicated to the particularly sensitive relationship between employers and employees, with the primary objective of protecting employees and their right to privacy.

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