September 20, 2004
Camera Phones in the Office Environment - Corporate Concerns
"The recent growth in popularity of two personal communication innovations, instant messaging and cellular phones with cameras installed, has left employee handbooks outdated and presents potential liability for employers.
In 2002, vendors shipped 18.2 million camera phones worldwide. In 2003, they shipped 50 million....
The camera phone
The camera phone presents a unique problem to employers, particularly in an office setting where employees may be expected or required to have a cellular telephone.
With a camera phone, an employee, particularly the departing or disgruntled type, can easily take “push-button” digital photographs of an employer’s confidential information, whether that is in the form of client lists, manufacturing design, new marketing schemes, product formula, etc. Once the pictures are taken, they can be sent from the camera phone instantly via Internet anywhere in the world.
In addition, the use of camera phones can easily lead to harassment and/or discrimination, and not just in obvious places like restrooms and locker rooms. Pictures taken from inappropriate angles or emphasizing certain anatomy can quickly lead to a lawsuit. The potential problems presented to employers by the onset of camera phones are exacerbated by the difficulty in monitoring and detecting the use of camera phones. Employers often will be the last to discover camera phones are being used inappropriately.
An employer’s best defense against the inappropriate use of camera phones is a clear policy concerning the use of cellular phones.
An employee handbook policy cannot eliminate the possibility of camera phone abuse, but it can set guidelines and parameters for their use, thereby limiting the opportunity for abuse. Obviously, the policy must be tailored to each employer’s workplace. Some employers may choose to ban camera phones altogether. However, a more practical approach for most employers may be to ban the presence of camera phones in certain areas of the employer’s facilities and/or to ban their use during working hours or on the employer’s premises.
Regardless of the work environment, every employer’s employee handbook should contain a policy regarding the use of camera phones." Read more at Is your Employee Handbook evolving with Technology?
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Posted by Darren at September 20, 2004 09:55 AM
