Rob works for a federal governmental agency.No policy statements have been reported to the employees regarding their privacy rights or regarding their use of workplace computers for personal business.Rob's supervisor has reason to suspect that Rob has used his workplace computer to order an illegal substance.Which of the following is true?
A) Rob's employer may search Rob's computer at any time since it was provided by the employer.
B) Even if Rob's employer tries to search Rob's computer,if Rob has deleted any incriminating information,the employer will be able to find nothing on his computer to prove Rob was engaged in illegal activity.
C) The Fourth Amendment prohibits unreasonable searches and seizures by the government,but this amendment does not apply to computers.
D) Because there was no policy statement by the employer,if Rob has a legitimate expectation of privacy in the information on his computer,his employer would have to obtain a search warrant in order to conduct a search of the computer.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Without a policy statement addressing employee privacy rights, Rob may have a legitimate expectation of privacy in the information on his workplace computer. In order to conduct a search of the computer, Rob's employer would have to obtain a search warrant. The Fourth Amendment applies to searches and seizures conducted by the government, and since Rob works for a federal governmental agency, his employer is considered the government. Therefore, the Fourth Amendment would protect Rob's right to privacy in this situation. Option A is not entirely accurate because Rob's employer would still need to have probable cause or a warrant to search his computer. Option B assumes that Rob has already deleted any incriminating information, and therefore, the employer would not be able to find anything. Option C is incorrect because the Fourth Amendment does apply to government searches of computers.

Rob Works for a Federal Governmental Agency