This comes back to a discussion last week. I don't see this as specifically
a DP issue. In any situation you are going to have some emails an
organisation needs to keep for their own or legal reasons. There are
probably 100 different pieces of legislation that impose data retention
requirements. Financial services companies, particularly those operating
in the US have stringent record keeping requirements that cover all
electronic forms of communication - so, for example, you will find some
broking/dealing houses are banning their staff from using mobile 'phones
for work.
As an employer you have to ask whether it is reasonable to expect employees
to differentiate for themselves, using a retention policy, or not, what
emails they are required to keep and for how long) and what they are not.
The bigger the organisation the greater the issue and the more likely it is
that someone is going to get it wrong.
One answer is to implement a solution that takes that human error prone
process away and that can track what has been received and sent through the
organisations servers, who has had it, who has amended it etc. Such a
system also has advantages re retrieval of lost emails. Staff have the
choice whether to use the systems for personal use - provided anyone likely
to use the system, whether internal or external, is informed I think these
systems are OK?
Chris
Talbot Richard <[log in to unmask]>@JISCMAIL.AC.UK> on 03/11/2004
18:49:28
Please respond to Talbot Richard <[log in to unmask]>
Sent by: This list is for those interested in Data Protection issues
<[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [data-protection] e-mail storage systems case law
A friend has asked me to ask if there has been any case law about e-mail
storage systems.
My friends company allow staff to use e-mail for personal and home life use
as well as business.
Her IT guys have started telling her that it is a legal requirement to have
an e-mail storage and retention archive because of the DPA (it would keep a
copy of every e-mail transaction for at least 5 years) We both believe this
to be rubbish, but what does the floor think are there any case law or
legal
requirements for such a system. She is not hit by foi as she is a private
company.
> Richard Talbot
> Data Protection Adviser
>
>
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