E-mail and other forms of Internet activity have quickly become ingrained in most corporate cultures. Moreover, e-mail has replaced the telephone as the primary and preferred method of business communication for those with Internet access. The success of e-mail, Web browsing and, more recently, instant messaging as business tools has outpaced users' perception of how these technologies should be used. Today, e-mail is admissible as evidence in a court of law, and message archives are routinely subpoenaed and searched in litigation proceedings. Yet, because people's perceptions of e-mail have not changed much over time, employees are now creating formal documents and longstanding corporate records without realizing it.
Web browsing is another example of a tool that presents an organization with risk.
First developed to assist in academic research and then expanded into the corporate and consumer world, Web browsing is now misused in the workplace to check stock prices, shop, gamble and view pornography. Thus, the emerging ubiquity of Internet access within the corporation, combined with the ever-growing set of services and information available on the Internet, creates an environment where employees are able to abuse, misuse and overuse the corporate resources at their disposal. Abuse by employees leaves employers vulnerable to lawsuits. Misuse by employees introduces various security issues, such as the release of confidential, proprietary or otherwise sensitive information. Overuse by employees causes a decline in their productivity and the straining of network resources.