A survey in Britain and the United States found that eavesdropping in public places was common. Nearly two out of five British professionals (35 per cent) and 34 per cent of Americans surveyed said they had caught sight of other people’s sensitive company documents.
Information exchanged during supposedly private business conversations were also used by others for their own advantage, according to survey findings.
The survey, TWO THIRDS OF TRAVELLING BRITS EAR CONFIDENTIAL BUSINESS INFORMATION LEAKED BY FRAZZLED BLACKBERRY GENERATION, has an obvious bias. Regus Group plc, the company that commissioned the survey, sells virtual offices, and meeting rooms to clients on a contract basis. Regus caters to small businesses, large companies with few representatives in a given location, and frequent travellers. However, the results seem to match my experience regarding the behaviour of many business people.
If you conduct business in inappropriate places, then expect somebody to listen in on what is transpiring. If you work on company documents in public, then expect somebody to look over your shoulder. Conducting business in public makes surveillance of your activities legal and ethical. If the guy sitting at the next table in a restaurant reports to a competitor what he sees and hears during your business meeting, don’t complain, you gave away the information, and a competitor will use it to advantage.
