You’re working hard, trusting that your personal space and communications are respected—until you find out your boss has been prying into your private messages.
It’s a scenario that feels both unsettling and infuriating, yet for some employees, it’s a harsh reality.
Recently, a social media post brought this issue to light, exposing the extreme lengths one Malaysian boss allegedly went to in order to spy on their staff.
M’sian boss sneakily reads staff’s WhatsApp messages
The post started as a simple warning but unfolded into a jaw-dropping story of workplace intrusion. The writer shared how their former boss would go to extreme lengths to spy on staff.
“Never leave your WhatsApp Web unattended,” the post began.
“My ex-boss literally came to the office when staff were on leave just to read private conversations on the office computer. He wanted to see what staff were saying about him behind his back.”
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The employee tried to take action, only to hit a dead end when seeking legal advice.
“I tried. Apparently, the lawyer said it’s an office computer, so legally, it’s not wrong. I don’t know,” they wrote.
‘My ex-boss zoomed in on our computers and phones using the office CCTV to see what we were chatting about‘
The post struck a nerve, with many netizens sharing their own troubling experiences of invasive employers.
Some comments highlighted gaps in workplace privacy laws, while others detailed personal encounters that mirrored the original post.
One commenter explained the legal challenges:
“Breach of privacy isn’t well-covered under Malaysian laws, but the right to privacy is constitutionally protected under personal liberty (Article 5(1)). Courts rarely rule on it. The only legal avenue is the PDPA, but that’s mostly for commercial transactions. So, please, log out of personal apps or secure them.”
“Since there’s little you can do legally against snooping employers, it’s better to expose them with solid evidence to avoid getting countersued. These a**holes shouldn’t get away scot free.”
Others shared their own horror stories:
“My ex-IT manager hacked all the PCs connected to the company Wi-Fi. He could check WhatsApp chats and even made snide remarks about what we were saying. It was so invasive!”
“My ex-boss zoomed in on our computers and phones using the office CCTV to see what we were chatting about. It was so creepy!”
While some level of monitoring may be justifiable for productivity, crossing into personal territory is a breach of trust that creates a toxic work environment.
