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Can an Israeli employer legally monitor employee emails and computer activity at work?

Yes, but only with prior transparent notice. Under the Protection of Privacy Law 5741-1981 and the guidelines issued by the Israeli Privacy Protection Authority (*Rashut HaGanat HaPratiyut*), an employer may monitor work-issued devices, corporate email accounts, and internet usage logs provided employees are informed in advance through a written workplace privacy policy. Covert monitoring — reading emails without any policy disclosure, installing hidden tracking software, or accessing personal accounts — is unlawful and can expose the employer to civil damages and criminal liability. Evidence obtained through unlawful monitoring may also be inadmissible in labor court proceedings.

The Protection of Privacy Law 5741-1981 protects the privacy of communications, including emails sent and received on work systems. Israeli courts and the National Labor Court have developed a framework that balances the employer's legitimate interest in protecting business information and monitoring productivity against the employee's residual privacy rights even in a work context. The key requirement is transparency: an employer who implements a monitoring system must publish a clear written policy before monitoring begins, stating what is monitored (email content, internet logs, keystrokes, screen capture), how data is stored, who can access it, and for what purpose. The Privacy Protection Authority published specific guidelines on workplace internet and email monitoring in 2022, reinforcing that employees must be informed in advance and that monitoring must be proportionate to a legitimate business purpose. Foreign employees working in Israel are protected by the same privacy framework as Israeli nationals.

The scope of lawful monitoring is confined to work-issued devices and corporate accounts. An employer who accesses an employee's personal Gmail, WhatsApp, or private social media — even on a work device — commits a privacy violation regardless of any workplace policy. The National Labor Court has consistently held that information obtained through unlawful surveillance cannot be used as evidence in disciplinary or dismissal proceedings, making the monitoring practically useless as well as legally risky. Employers who discover misconduct through unlawfully obtained evidence face the prospect of a wrongful dismissal claim succeeding despite the underlying misconduct, because the dismissal was procedurally tainted. A proportionate and properly disclosed monitoring policy, reviewed by an Israeli employment attorney before deployment, is the only approach that preserves both the employer's ability to act on what it finds and the legal integrity of any subsequent disciplinary process.

⚖ In Practice
  • Governing law: Sections 2 and 16, Protection of Privacy Law 5741-1981; Privacy Protection Authority Workplace Monitoring Guidelines (2022)
  • Competent authority: Privacy Protection Authority (Rashut HaGanat HaPratiyut) for complaints; National Labor Court (Beit HaDin HaArtzi LeAvoda) for employment disputes
  • Mandatory disclosure: written workplace privacy policy must be provided to every employee before any monitoring begins — a clause in the employment contract is insufficient without a standalone policy
  • Personal accounts: accessing an employee's personal email, WhatsApp, or social media accounts is unlawful in all circumstances, even on employer-issued hardware
  • Evidence rule: information obtained through unlawful monitoring is generally inadmissible in labor court; courts have reinstated dismissed employees where the employer's evidence was tainted by privacy violations

From the full guide: Employment Law in Israel for Foreign Nationals and Expats

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Get a Free Consultation with Adv. Eli ShimonyPrepared under the direction of Adv. Eli Shimony, Eli Shimony Law Office · Editorial policy

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