Working from home often gives me a sense of freedom and independence. Sure, sometimes I miss water cooler gossip and the camaraderie of co-working, but I really love never having to worry about my sometimes NSFW lunch break scrolling. Unfortunately, for many workers, the sense of agency that comes with WFH is something of a mirage, because more and more employers are secretly monitoring their employees at home.
According to new data released this week by software company VMWare, 70% of employers surveyed were either already using or were planning on using monitoring technology to track their employees. The same report found that 24% of employees didn’t know whether their employers were using tracking software or not, which is kind of terrifying. It’s one thing to be aware that your boss is keeping tabs on your productivity, but it’s quite another for a company to keep tabs on you without your knowledge or consent.
