The European Court of Human Rights (“ECtHR”) has handed down a decision on the right to employee privacy when an employer monitors private messages sent by an employee through a work-related Yahoo messaging account. The employee had been dismissed for personal internet use at work, contrary to the employer’s internal rules. As part of its investigation the employer accessed private messages sent by the employee to friends and family relating to personal matters. These messages were printed by the employer and used in the disciplinary proceedings as well as in the subsequent court cases. The ECtHR held that the monitoring and use of the personal messages was a proportionate interference in the employee’s privacy rights under the Convention. The decision does not, however, override existing UK legislation, including the Data Protection Act 1998.