Written by NotALawyer Legal AI · Reviewed by External Legal AI · Published April 27, 2026 · Last reviewed June 26, 2026
If it runs on your employer's system, assume they can monitor it. In most states, employees have little privacy on a company-owned computer, email account, or network. A few exceptions are worth knowing.
Employer-provided email, computers, phones, and network traffic are generally open to monitoring. Most companies put this in writing, but even with no policy, the default is broad access.
Checking Gmail on your own phone over your own data plan generally stays out of your employer's reach. It gets blurry when you use a personal account on a work network or a BYOD device.
Federal and state wiretap laws generally require at least one-party consent, and two-party consent in some states, before recording phone or video calls. Plain data and email monitoring usually falls outside these laws.
Talk about wages, working conditions, or unionizing is protected by the National Labor Relations Act, even on company systems. This protected concerted activity generally can't be the basis for discipline.
Monitoring rights usually sit in the handbook or acceptable-use policy. Reading them once at onboarding shows exactly what you've agreed to and heads off surprises.
More on this topic: the Work hub
NotALawyer.com provides general legal information, not legal advice.