Brave New World: Digital Working Life in Germany

Incorrect or careless use of social networks easily leads to negative effects on privacy in the workplace. Insults, slurs and romantic advances via social media channels are commonplace in companies. Cyber-bullying - i.e. harassment or bullying via social media - is on the rise.

Nearly ten percent of all global respondents have been offended by a colleague via email, instant messaging, social media or SMS, according to the results of the Digital Diaries study by IT security provider AVG.

This also applies to Germany: 14 percent of all German employees have already come across secret conversations about themselves on social networks. This makes Germans the world leaders in digital slander.

"At the latest since smartphones, tablets and the like have conquered the workplace, the professional and private worlds are increasingly overlapping. The smartphone is quickly at hand when a colleague needs to be reached from the sofa at home. The discussion ultimately goes far beyond technical and legal aspects.

Jürgen Jakob, Managing Director of Jakobsoftware and security expert, is convinced.

Six percent of all respondents have already received unwanted romantic advances via social networks, for example. One in eight employees also stated that colleagues had already spread rumors about them in the office via social media.

Eleven percent of all employees surveyed have been exposed by pictures and videos taken and uploaded at work, at the company Christmas party or on the company outing.

In Germany, one in 20 people is affected, while in Spain the figure is four times higher at 19 percent. Tony Anscombe, Senior Security Evangelist at AVG, explains:

"Employers also need to pay attention when managing the company's social media presence. Until everyone knows what behavior is acceptable online and what is not, any attempt to implement official company policies against cyber bullying will fail. That opens the door to bullying and intrusions into private lives."

What's particularly bad about this is that almost one in ten of the employees surveyed worldwide said that a supervisor had used information, rumors and gossip spread on social networks against themselves or against colleagues.

In the USA, as many as 13 percent have had this experience. In contrast, five percent of Germans report that superiors exploit their position to this extent. Nevertheless, employees continue to accept friendship requests from colleagues and superiors even though they don't actually want to.

In Germany, 24 percent of respondents said they had not withstood the pressure and had accepted friendship requests from their professional environment despite feeling uncomfortable.

When it comes to harassment and insults on social networks, German employees are not afraid of direct confrontation. 65 percent of employees are more likely to speak directly to the colleague who is harassing them than to their boss (53 percent).

This is in stark contrast to some English-speaking countries. In the UK, for example, 69 percent speak directly to their supervisor (U.S. 61 percent), while 47 percent confront their colleague directly (U.S. 44 percent).

Since social networks in the workplace have a sensitive impact on privacy, many employees around the world now use social networks only to a limited extent or even not at all.

In the U.S. and the U.K., almost two-thirds feel their privacy has been compromised, and the global average of 53 percent of all respondents is more than half. However, this is not the case in Germany: Only 38 percent of German employees feel that their professional privacy is at risk.

However, 49 percent of German employees said they would be more careful about posting comments and pictures in the future, with a full 37 percent avoiding all social media activity at work as a consequence.

This puts them in second place after France with 40 percent. Almost a quarter of all respondents worldwide are at least restricting their activities as a result, while in Germany this figure is only 13 percent - the lowest in the world.

Another interesting fact: While half of all respondents worldwide believe that their company is responsible for the posts made by employees, including via their private accounts during working hours, only 27 percent in Germany hold this view.

About the study: About AVG Digital Diaries

For the current 7th study entitled "Digital Work Life" from the "Digital Diaries" series, 4000 employees in ten countries were surveyed on behalf of AVG Technologies. Each part of the series is dedicated to a different aspect of the digital world and its impact on people and society.

Previously published are "Digital Birth," "Digital Skills," "Digital Playground," "Digital Maturity," "Digital Coming of Age," and "Digital Baggage." Research Now conducted the research for all parts of the Digital Diaries series on behalf of AVG Technologies.