My current employer accessed my Livejournal..

Question

Not sure how they did, I figure keylogging, but the main issue I'm having with this is the posts were all friend-locked, not viewable to the public, and they're trying to use some of my posts against me, by "reading between the lines" on said posts. They're pretty much threatening my job due to getting this info, although nothing bad or slanderous was being said about them. Just my thoughts. Do I have any legal options?

Answer 1

There's a reason it is called a private life. Isn't there a "psa" that advises if you wouldn't say it in person, don't put it on the internet? Ben Franklin said two people can keep a secret if one of them is dead and you exposed many of your negative thoughts to the entire world.

Unfortunately, because you are not one of the millions who do this with virtual anonymity, this has combined the two most malevelent personalities to develop in this short century. When the post 9/11 paranoids uncover inuendo, the post Columbine corporate conscience will sanctimoniously act on what MAY happen and not what has happened. After the Virginia Tech incident, even remote possibilities can prompt reactions which totally discount any previous service.

Unless you have a very substantial justification to counter the umbrella of "unprofessionalism" they can use, any options you have will be difficult at best. Even unemployment is questionable with all the hard evidence they can produce. If there was any practical recourse, haven't you already had enough exposure? Even meeting Oprah wouldn't be worth it.

When you find yourself in a hole, stop digging. Just "secure in place" and wait for the fallout to subside.

Answer 2

I would consult a lawyer on this one (I wish I was a lawyer so I could help!).  

It seems that they logged in as you to find that information, correct?  If that's the case, there's definitely some type of trespassing involved.

I'm sorry to hear about this - this happened to me once also but I didn't pursue anything because I knew it was a fault of mine.  Your situation seems to be a little different.

Good luck :)