An employee monitoring consent form records that an employee has been told what is monitored and has acknowledged it. In the United States an acknowledgment of notice is usually what the law asks for, and New York requires one. In the UK and the EU, consent is rarely a valid legal basis for monitoring at work, so use the form as proof of notice and not as permission.
Key takeaways
- Call it an acknowledgment. It proves the employee was told.
- New York, Connecticut and Delaware each have a written notice rule.
- In Europe, a signature does not make monitoring lawful.
- The form should point to a policy that says exactly what is recorded.
Is it consent or acknowledgment?
| Consent | Acknowledgment | |
|---|---|---|
| What the employee is saying | "I agree to this" | "I have been told about this" |
| Can it be refused or withdrawn? | In principle, yes | It records a fact |
| Works as a legal basis in the UK and EU? | Rarely, at work | Not a legal basis. It supports transparency |
| What US notice laws ask for | Not required | Required in New York and one option in Delaware |
European regulators doubt that an employee can freely refuse an employer. The EU's data protection authorities said in Opinion 2/2017 on data processing at work that consent will not be a sound basis for most processing at work. The UK regulator says consent is not usually appropriate in the employment context.
So the same piece of paper does different jobs. In the United States it is evidence of notice. In Europe it is evidence that you were transparent, and you still need a separate lawful basis.
Where is a signed notice required?
US states with a written notice rule
- New York
- Written notice at hiring, an acknowledgment in writing or electronic form and a posted notice, under Civil Rights Law § 52-c
- Connecticut
- Prior written notice of the types of monitoring, under General Statutes § 31-48d
- Delaware
- An acknowledged one-time notice or an electronic notice each day, under Title 19, § 705
- Everywhere else
- Not always required, and still the cheapest protection you can buy
See the New York guide and is employee monitoring legal?
What should the form include?
Eight things to put on the form
- The company name and the name of the policy it refers to
- What is monitored, in plain words
- When monitoring runs, with working hours and days
- What is not monitored
- Who can see the information
- How long it is kept
- Who to ask
- The employee's name, signature and the effective date
Acknowledgment form template
Replace the text in brackets with your own details.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF ELECTRONIC MONITORING Company: [Company name] Policy: [Name of monitoring policy], version [number] 1. What is monitored On company computers, [Company name] uses time tracking software that records: - the application in use and its window title - the domain of websites visited in the browser - periods with no keyboard or mouse input - screenshots taken at random intervals of [minimum] to [maximum] minutes, with [blur level] blur [Add or remove items so that this list matches your settings exactly.] 2. When Only during scheduled working hours: [start time] to [end time], [working days]. Nothing is recorded outside these hours or on non-working days. 3. What is not monitored [Company name] does not record personal devices, personal accounts or activity outside working hours. 4. Who can see it and how long it is kept Your own record is visible to you, your manager and system administrators. Screenshots are kept for [period]. Activity data is kept for [period]. 5. Purpose The information is used to record working time and attendance, to report time on projects and to protect company systems. 6. Questions Contact [name, role, email]. ACKNOWLEDGMENT I have received and read the policy named above. I understand what is monitored, when, and who can see it. Employee name: ______________________ Signature: ______________________ Effective date: ______________________
Short version for electronic acceptance
Use this where staff accept policies in an HR system.
I confirm that I have received and read [Name of monitoring policy]. I understand that [Company name] monitors company computers during scheduled working hours, that the policy lists what is recorded, and that I can ask [contact] any question about it.
How do you collect and store acknowledgments?
Share the policy first
Give people time to read it and ask questions before they sign.
Collect one acknowledgment per person
On paper or in your HR system. Record the version of the policy.
Store it with employment records
You may need to show it years later.
Repeat when the monitoring changes
A new kind of monitoring needs a new notice and a new acknowledgment.
Add it to onboarding
New hires acknowledge before monitoring starts for them.
Do
- Keep the list of what is monitored identical to your settings
- Give people a named contact
- Collect a fresh acknowledgment after changes
Do not
- Bury the notice in a 60-page handbook
- Describe monitoring in vague terms such as "systems may be monitored" and nothing more
- Treat a signature as permission to collect anything
How to present the change is covered in how to tell employees they are being monitored. The full policy is in the employee monitoring policy template.
How does BirdsEye support the form?
A form is only as good as its accuracy. BirdsEye shows every employee the live rules in the desktop agent: tracking hours, screenshot interval, blur level, idle threshold, and whether website and webcam tracking are on. The form can point to that screen. On the Business plan, an audit log records changes to settings with who made them and when. See security and privacy.
Frequently asked questions
Do employees have to sign a monitoring consent form?
Where a notice law applies, the employer must give notice, and New York requires an acknowledgment. An employee who declines to sign has still been told. Record that the notice was given and take advice on next steps.
Is a signed consent form enough to make monitoring legal?
No. In the United States it shows that notice was given. Other laws still limit what you can collect. In the UK and EU you need a lawful basis other than consent in most cases.
How often should the form be renewed?
Whenever the monitoring changes, and for every new hire. Some employers also ask for it again each year with other policy acknowledgments.
Can the acknowledgment be electronic?
Yes in New York, where the statute allows an electronic form. Elsewhere, electronic acceptance is widely used. Keep a record of who accepted, which version and when.