The Norwegian data protection authority ('Datatilsynet') announced, on 1 September 2022, that it had conducted a survey on monitoring and control of employees' digital activities and published a report with the findings. In particular, the Datatilsynet outlined that digital work tools commonly used across industries record large amounts of information about the employees who use them, noting that it can be difficult for employees to have an overview of what information is collected and stored and how it is used. In addition, the Datatilsynet warned about the possibility of such tools being deliberately used to monitor and control employees.

Further to the above, the Datatilsynet highlighted, among other things, the following findings, as a result of the survey carried out:

• more than half of employees surveyed had an insufficient overview of what information the employers collect;
• employers have the opportunity to collect large amounts of information about employees' digital activities;
• software designed to monitor employees can be very intrusive; and
• several employees see signs that their employer monitors visits to websites.

You can read the press release here and the report here, both only available in Norwegian.