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This Call May Be Monitored ...
Iphtashu Fitz writes "We've all heard it. The recorded message when you call technical support or your bank or credit card company: 'This call may be monitored for quality assurance purposes.' But has it ever occurred to you that people actually DO listen in? Approximately 2 percent of these calls are listened to either live or after the fact, and it may come as a surprise that Big Brother even listens to what you may say while you are on hold. The people who monitor these calls routinely hear arguments between spouses or parents and children, people yelling at pets, and all sorts of other domestic disputes."
What part of "This call may be monitored" did you not understand?
I don't get it.
My rights: I'm told that the call may be monitored. I can hang up if I object. No 'rights' are being violated.
Online: You mean "on the phone", right?
Seriously, where's the BIG BROTHER story here? Slow news day?
"Ask not what your country can do for you." --John F. Kennedy
People seem to lose all sense of reality when you tell them they are on hold
Actually what they say while they think they are on hold IS the reality.
And, as always, my question is this: how is it that this is related to my rights online when I call up a remote location, with no idea what's on the other end, and my call is recorded when I speak INTO THE PHONE *after* I'm told it might be recorded?
Perhaps if you RTFA you'll see that the issues are more complex than this. For me, two parts of the article that disturbed me are
1) That the monitoring itself even captures what you say while on hold. Despite the 'please hold' and you listen to music, they are recording what you say. That was a reminder for me. I kinda thought the monitoring would be done while you were communicating with someone, not while listening to muzak. I wonder how many times they have heard me say 'If you are so concerned about your customer, don't make me wait on hold' or perhaps 'Thanks for my patience? Do I have a f'in choice?'
2) The monitoring itself is being outsource. Third parties, sometimes in other countries, are listening in when the rep asks you for you account number, mothers maiden name, etc. Thats a privacy issue about how my data is protected/not protected.
I think you are focusing on the wrong parts of the article.
As far as how does this relate to online? Hmm, its a stretch, more about affects of technology. TFA does mention VOIP.
This obviously puts the company in a sticky situation since they're most likely NOT in the business of being a match-making service, and this kind of behavior is almost certainly NOT allowed on "company time."
So is it wrong for a waitress to spend a little time flirting with a customer? Or agreeing to go out on a date with him?