Company-owned devices: rights, rules, and consent

September 19, 2026 · 6 min read

This is a general overview, not legal advice — laws vary widely, so check your jurisdiction and talk to counsel. But the shape of the rules is consistent enough to summarize.

The general principles

• You can usually monitor hardware you own when it's used for work and employees are informed.
• Notice and consent matter. Some regions require explicit consent; nearly all favor clear notice. A signed acknowledgment at install is best practice — Opus captures one.
• Private communications get extra protection. Reading the content of personal messages can cross legal lines even on company devices. Measuring app and site usage generally does not. Opus is built to stay on the safe side by not capturing content.
• Personal devices are different. Monitoring an employee's own computer, or anyone's device without authority over it, is a different and far riskier matter.

Your responsibilities

With the ability to monitor comes the duty to be proportionate: collect what serves a legitimate business purpose, tell people what's collected and why, secure the data, and use it fairly. A written policy that employees acknowledge protects everyone — the company legally, and employees from overreach.

FAQ

Can I monitor an employee’s personal laptop?

Generally you should not without clear authority and consent — it carries significant legal risk. Opus is intended for organization-owned devices and household computers you control.

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