A French appeals court has ruled in a case opposing two stock broker firms that employers have a right to read SMS sent or received by staff on company-owned phones, reports 01net. The Court of Cassation ruled in 2013 that businesses were allowed to read e-mail in their employees’ work mailboxes, even when they were not present, if the subject heading did not state that it is personal. Under the new ruling, employers need a legitimate motive to check SMS directly on handsets, through mobile device management software or on central servers where they are stored. The only ways for workers to protect SMS is to use a separate handset for personal calls and texts, or to identify SMS on their work phone as personal. Even if this does not prevent employers from reading them, they cannot use them as a reason to sanction workers.

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http://www.telecompaper.com/news/french-court-says-firms-can-read-sms-on-company-phones–1066624

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