Employee monitoring: jargon buster

Section seven of the Personnel Today Management Resources one stop guide on employee monitoring, comprising a glossary of key terms. Other sections .

Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 States that only the owner of the copyright is allowed to copy information

Covert monitoring Monitoring carried out in a manner calculated to ensure those subject to it are unaware it is taking place.

Data controllers Employers who process personal data about employees

Data processor Any person other than the data controller who processes personal data on behalf of the data controller

Data Protection Act 1988 Protects personal data and allows data to be disclosed and held only in accordance with data protection principles

Data subjects The employees to which this data relates

Defamation Act 1996 Renders the author, editor or publisher of a defamatory statement strictly liable for it.

Disability Discrimination Act 1995 Prohibits discrimination by an employer against a disabled person

Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003

Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2003

Employment Practices Data Protection Code A code of practice issued by the Information Commission to help employers meet the requirements of the Data Protection Act

Freedom of Information Act 2000 Gives individuals rights to information from public authorities

Human Rights Act 1988 Act which wrote the European Convention of Human Rights into UK law, giving everyone the right to respect for his private and family life, his home and his correspondence

Interception An interception occurs when in the course of transmission, the contents of a communication are made available to someone other than the sender or intended recipient.

Monitoring Includes activities such as recording activities with CCTV cameras, opening e-mails or voicemails, checking internet usage, keeping records of telephone calls, or checking with credit reference agencies.

Obscene Publications Act 1959 Outlaws the publication and distribution of obscene material

Personal data Any data relating to a living individual from which that individual can be identified, or from which, together with other information in the possession of, or likely to come into the possession of the data controller, that individual can be identified. This includes any expression of opinion about the individual, and any indication of the intentions of the data controller or any other person in respect of that individual.

Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 Authorises interception when the employer (interceptor) has reasonable grounds to believe both the sender and the intended recipient have consented.

Telecommunications Act 1984 Makes it an offence to send 'by means of a public telecommunications system, a message or other matter that is grossly offensive or of an indecent, obscene or menacing character'.

Telecommunications (Lawful Business Practice) (Interception of Communications) Regulations 2000 Set out circumstances in which businesses can lawfully intercept without consent such as to ensure employees do not breach company rules, to check for viruses and to monitor.