Private data protection of business e-mails

A corporate email account that may be used for private correspondence raises various privacy issues for all of us.

The problem under the GDPR may not be resolved by only saying that employers own and freely dispose of business email addresses. If an employer grants permission also for private use, employees may have a legitimate reason to object to arbitrary access. And the fine can be hundreds of thousands of Hungarian Forints.

But what exactly does the ban apply to? Under what conditions can an employer look into an email account anyway? And why is the difference between inactivation and deletion of the account so important?
 
In December 2019, the National Data Protection and Freedom of Information Authority (NAIH) issued a decision in which an employer searched the archived workplace email account of a former employee without informing the employer thereof.
In our recent article, we answer the above questions with a brief overview of the case. Useful details also give you guidance on your day-to-day operation – either as an employee or as an employer. For detailed information in English, please contact us.