One third of US companies employ email snoops

A survey carried out by security outfit Proofpoint has revealed that 32 percent OF US companies employ people specifically to read employee e-mails.

Twenty-seven percent of these companies have sacked an employee for abuse of email and 45 percent have taken disciplinary measures against staff who broke company rules on email use.

The biggest problem, as far as the surveyed companies are concerned, is the leaking of industrial secrets and information.

More than a quarter of surveyed companies report that their business was impacted by the exposure of sensitive or embarrassing information in the last year and over a third had investigated a suspected email leak of confidential or proprietary information.

Social notworking sites are also a major cause of concern with 14 percent of companies disciplining employees for violating policies relating to the use of Facebook, et al.

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