Legal Question in Technology Law in California

Re: email

If you are using a VNC, and presumably your transmissions to and from your email provider are encrypted, there is the practical matter of how your employer would obtain your emails. But if it were deemed very important, even deleted files on your PC could possibly be recovered and viewed. If it went to court, the courts would probably rule that you did not have a reasonable expectation of privacy on the employer's machine (even though you probably would if the employer, say, went through your locked desk drawer - go figure). If I were you, I would get a Treo or a BlackBerry handheld device and use this device to send and receive personal email.

Re: email

Since you have been put on notice that the company may monitor your activities, it would be hard to argue that you have a reasonable expectation of privacy. The fact that you didn't sign the document probably doesn't matter much, since your decision to keep working for the company strikes me as acceptance of the policies it has disclosed to you. Keep in mind that the company can probably terminate you if you don't agree to abide by these policies.

Re: email

I agree with Mr. Stone. The best way to maintain privacy is to separate personal email from anything that might ever touch an employer's email servers.

Blackberries are great, but even a free Hotmail account is better than having your boyfriend write to you at a work address, if you see what I mean.