is its reasonable for a boss to use key/ & site logging software to track internet usage by workers?

Yes because it's his internet your using and if your visiting porn sites he wants to know about it so he can stop you from using it. This is dangerouse anyway it could be a pedophile using the system downloading images that he doesn't want on their neither would i. So he's got every right to track anyone using it. would't you.........

Yes, the boss is paying for your productivity, and if there is a pattern of employees spending too much time on the internet and not getting their jobs done, it's certainly reasonable of them to monitor net usage and take appropriate actions.

Also, labor laws prohibit the display of certain things in the workplace (most notably pornography), and the company could get into serious trouble if it was discovered that they were letting employees browse porn sites during work hours and did nothing to stop the activity...in such a case, a class-action sexual harassment suit would only be the beginning of their troubles.

Once you are using the internet and computer systems belonging to an employer's network, it is perfectly reasonable AND legal for your boss to monitor or "track" you're activities while online. The point is though there are certain privacy laws which bosses cant disregard but in the case of a network system belonging to a workplace, bosses are obliged to keep an eye on the activities of their employers.

Most places, including private companies, have network monitoring software and regulations to control emplyee's activities. This would be available in your contract or job description and is all to do with data protection and safety in the workplace. I would check the internal policy of your employment and see what's included.

Hope that helps.

I agree with tracking employee's activity on computers because:

1) It isn't your computer most likely

2) The employee doesn't own the network

So I figure the CEO can monitor anyone's activity on company owned devices on the network, and yes, it is perfectly legal for an employer to monitor what you (the employee) does instead of work during the day.

Per articles below,

Already, 76% of companies monitor employees' website connections, and 65% block access to specific sites, up from 40% in 2001. Some 52 percent scan e-mail, and around one in five keeps an eye on instant messaging. About 35% track the content, keystrokes and time spent at the keyboard, according to the 2005 study by the American Management Association and The ePolicy Institute, a Columbus, Ohio-based training and consulting firm. More than half of employers retain and review e-mail messages.

Most monitoring is done at the network level, and most employers are under no legal obligation to tell you if you're being monitored.

In a study (PDF) by the Center for Business Ethics at Bentley College, more than 90 percent of companies allow "reasonable personal usage" of the Web, but only 42 percent define "reasonable." For example, four out of five of businesses surveyed said it was okay for employees to visit news sites, but only about half allowed employees to shop or bank online. Better to ask questions first and surf later.

In one AMA survey, some 60 percent of companies that monitor e-mail use software to scan e-mail for keywords and block sensitive information from going out. A study (PDF) by Forrester Consulting and Proofpoint found that 44 percent of large firms hired people to read corporate e-mail.

Using services like Yahoo or Hotmail can make it harder for your boss to spy on your e-mail conversations, but they hardly make it impossible. Your company could use Web-monitoring software like Websense or SurfControl to block access to these sites, or log how much time you're spending at them and confront you about it. Network administrators could also install a "sniffer" that reads unencrypted data as it passes down the wires.

I work at home, so I can do whatever I please. Don't be so sure. It all depends on whose equipment and Internet connection you're using. If your employer supplied the machine, your company can do anything it pleases with the computer, including examining your personal files on the hard drive. If you use your own PC but log in using your employer's Net connection, the company can legally track any of your activity online, unless you have an agreement that states otherwise.

Employers look closely at what workers do on job

http://www.usatoday.com/money/industries/technolog...

http://pcworld.about.com/news/Oct062004id118072.ht...

Yep! I think you'll find most companys do this now. Obviously they have to protect thier systems from virus's and stuff like that and also, as they usually own the network you are working on, have every right to ensure it is only used for the intention is there for.

You'd be surprised just how much working hours are wasted through employee's sending private e-mails and surfing the net. They are paying you to work for them and do your job, not to do your own personal thing :)

yes it is because there might be company secrets that could be transferred to competitors via the web. and also it's a good way to see if his employees are wasting company time on social site like myspace and bebo or any of the chat clients. also to see that employees are not using company computers for illegal/immoral activities.

just by virtue of you asking this question you seem to think you should be provided company computers and an internet connection for your personal use. companies supply computers and internet for company bussiness bottom line.

In short, Yes.

You need to understand that any activities carried out on company hardware in the workplace must comply with national law and company regulations. It is the responsibility of management to ensure that no activities are carried out that would contravene the law and/or leave the company legally liable to prosecution.

It is this factor which gives management the right to use spyware on their company systems..

Remember! Any activity you consider personal and private should not be carried out on company systems as they are supposedly for company business only.

yes an employer is well within thier rights to log what you are doing on THEIR computers whilst you are at work. I think it is even more justified ATM given that a number of people have been sacked from the DVLA for looking at pornographic material. Ewwww disgusting!!!

To observe your network usage - yes.

I'm not 100% sure about the key-logging though!

You are on his network (his property), so he has the right to check on your usage but key-logging could be challenging your human rights!