Privacy
None of this is expert advice. It's what people worked out for themselves, usually the hard way — what actually helped, and what they'd tell someone standing where you are. Take what fits and leave the rest.
If you only read a few
If a coworker cannot stop gossiping, keep your major life plans secret from them to protect your job security.
To prevent them from wrecking your job before you are ready to tell your employer.
one person who lived it
Assume your employer can read all emails sent on company devices or networks, including personal accounts accessed via work computers.
Employers can force devices to accept their signing certificate to read Gmail or Yahoo, and may use applications to view screens and catch every keystroke and mouse click.
one person who lived it
Do not rely on deleting emails to hide past communications, as deletion does not remove copies held by others or the company.
Once information is shared, it is hard-to-impossible to unshare; claiming you deleted them means squat.
one person who lived it
In new environments, keep your single status private by implying that you are taken.
This helps prevent rumor generation.
one person who lived it
Assume you have zero privacy for any work-related communication and keep non-work topics strictly on personal channels.
Work messages, emails, and web traffic may be read by employers; investigations have occurred because employees failed to switch to personal devices.
one person who lived it
Be cautious of employers using email tracking pixels to monitor activity, such as reading emails after hours.
Employers may track opens to enforce response times or prove message receipt.
one person who lived it
When freezing your data with The Work Number, call customer service to initiate the freeze if the website does not provide an option after logging in.
The website may direct you to contact support via email, phone, or mail instead of offering a direct online option.
one person who lived it
Do not use company-owned devices, networks, or email accounts for personal activities, such as job hunting or private communications.
The company can pull up any data stored on devices they own.
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One person reported that when filling out anonymous workplace surveys, they faced a dilemma: as the only team member in a specific location, telling the truth made them instantly identifiable, while lying about their location would have gotten them in trouble.
- Lying about identifying details like physical location could get you in trouble.
one person who lived it