미국의 전자통신프라이버시법과 근로자의 프라이버시

Employee s Privacy Protection on the Electronic Communications Privacy Act

The Federal Wiretap Act was enacted in 1968 in response to the Supreme Court s extension of Fourth Amendment protection to oral communications, including those by telephone, which were becoming increasingly easy to intercept. The act, however, only protected those communications that could be overheard by the ear. The statute thus seemed inapplicable to the new technology developing in the mid-1980s. In 1986 the Electronic Communications Privacy Act ( ECPA ) amended the Federal Wiretap Act, seeking to bring under it the latest in electronic communication technology. The ECPA is the only federal law currently applicable to the issue of workplace telephone, oral communication and e-mail monitoring. This Act generally prohibits the interception, disclosure or intentional use of wire, oral or electronic communication in the workplace. And this Act established a privacy interests for parties to cellular telephone conversations, but created serious ambiguities as to the extent of protection afforded to e-mail and other emerging forms of communication. While the ECPA serves as the most important limitation to electronic surveillance in the workplace, the U.S. and state constitutions, other statutes, and common law claim for invasion of privacy also limit employers rights to electronic surveillance in the workplace. The Act provides two other defenses to employers. First, this Act does not apply if the employer has the consent of one party to the communication, Second, under the provider exemption, telephone companies and other employers that provide wire communication services may calls for service checks.