Secure Private Web Sites and Wiretapping

Masem writes "According to this CNET article, an interesting case is working it's way through the courts. A pilot for Hawaiian Airlines had set up a private web site, sufficiently secured for only those that he wanted to allow access to (in this case, coworkers), on which he reported gripes and complaints about the company. The airline used a fellow pilot's name and information to gain access to the site at least 20 times to find out what he was doing (though the article does not say if the pilot had been punished in anyway). The pilot's lawyers argued that secured communication that the web site provided was considered to be the same level as phone calls, and thus the activities of the airline were akin to wiretapping. The initial judical decision rejected this arguement, but a federal circuit court reversed it and found in favor of the pilot. It's unknown where this will go, but this decision could set several favorable precidents regarding private communications on the net."