this post was submitted on 06 Mar 2026
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[–] ViatorOmnium@piefed.social 93 points 4 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago) (4 children)

Work stuff should be on a work phone.

I don't understand why either the worker or the company would ever allow the use of personal devices for work.

[–] Elextra@literature.cafe 25 points 4 days ago (1 children)

Some businesses don't pay for phones but agreed

[–] halcyoncmdr@piefed.social 39 points 4 days ago (1 children)

That's their point. If the company requires you to use a phone, they need to provide it.

[–] bonenode@piefed.social 10 points 4 days ago (2 children)

They can also just let you go for someone else who has no clue about this and gladly would use their private phone for work. Depends on the job and company, of course.

[–] LemmyFeed@lemmy.dbzer0.com 4 points 3 days ago

That's dangerous thinking; "if I don't then someone else will." That's a common excuse that thieves use. And it's you doing the work of your oppressor.

Standing up for what you believe in isn't always easy, but it's always the right choice.

[–] eleitl@lemmy.zip 5 points 3 days ago

You don't want to work for a cheap company.

[–] KiwiTB@lemmy.world 15 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Because they are cheap and their tech lead is probably incompetent.

[–] popekingjoe@lemmy.world 5 points 3 days ago (1 children)

This is Walmart in a nutshell. A majority of the work phones at my store (used for stuff like inventory management) are Samsung Galaxy XCover Pros from like 2016. They were trash the day they released and they're especially trash now. The company is very slowly replacing them with Pixel 8s (like one every six months comes in). It is legitimately frustrating.

[–] limerod@reddthat.com 1 points 3 days ago

Why pixel 8 in particular? Wouldn't an A series pixel be cheaper.

[–] cole@lemdro.id 8 points 3 days ago (3 children)

my work pays my cell phone bill if I install Microsoft teams, and frankly that's a pretty good deal

[–] Railcar8095@lemmy.world 6 points 3 days ago (1 children)

With that money, get a second one and it's it only during work ours. Doesn't even need connection, use WiFi of tethering.

[–] cole@lemdro.id 1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

that sounds annoying. I'd rather just have it all on the same device. I can enable and disable work apps on a schedule if I'm bothered. I don't want to deal with two devices really

[–] Turret3857@infosec.pub 1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

If youre in the US and your company is paying your phone bill, they are legally allowed to access your location via cell towers at any given moment. That, in combination with the fact that they can also legally take the phone from you (You have company trade secrets on that device if you install their software), I dont see the point in risking not having a 2nd device.

[–] cole@lemdro.id 1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

you're gonna have to cite some sources here because I don't think there is actually a legal requirement for these things.

the work apps require Internet access to even open and the contents are encrypted. this has all been figured out

[–] Turret3857@infosec.pub 1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Legitimate Reasons for Employer Device Access There are valid reasons why an employer might need to access an employee’s phone, regardless of ownership: Legal Compliance: To comply with legal requests such as subpoenas or investigations. Security Breaches: To investigate potential security breaches or data leaks. Violation of Company Policy: To investigate violations of company policies regarding acceptable use. Employee Termination: Upon termination, to retrieve company data and ensure a smooth transition.

https://www.aeanet.org/can-an-employer-take-your-phone/#Can_an_Employer_Take_Your_Phone_Exploring_Workplace_Device_Confiscation

Let's be generous and say your employer considers your phone a personal device even though they pay for the service.

For an employer to legally track a personal phone’s location, they need explicit consent from the employee and must have narrowly defined policies.

https://legalclarity.org/can-my-employer-track-my-work-phone-location/

Is there anything stopping them from hiding a tracking policy in your contract? Did you fully read the contract to check? Would allowing them to pay for the service count as consent in court? IANAL, but why would you risk it, when you could just have a work phone you only use for work.

[–] cole@lemdro.id 1 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

You stated that employers can use cell towers to track your phone.

This is not true. If my employer pays for my cell phone service then it is not "their" phone. It is mine because I still own the device.

Moreover, they do not directly pay for my cell service. Instead, I am reimbursed monthly.

They do not have any special permissions or legal basis they would not otherwise have by doing this.

And yes, I have read my contract (you should too!)

[–] Daniel_@discuss.tchncs.de 1 points 3 days ago

So does my company

[–] Auli@lemmy.ca 1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

So didn't have to instsll intune or anything?

[–] cole@lemdro.id 1 points 3 days ago

yeah but you can disable most of it's invasive permissions so I'm ok with it

[–] zelahdieliekeis@piefed.blahaj.zone 1 points 4 days ago (1 children)

Not all works would allow it, but why not Graphene on work phones.

[–] ViatorOmnium@piefed.social 1 points 4 days ago (2 children)

What happens if the worker doesn't have a smartphone, or has one, it breaks and they don't have money to buy another for while, or what if they install a random app that encrypts their mailbox?

Even if you live in a 3rd world country where employers can force it, it's a stupid decision for the business.

[–] zelahdieliekeis@piefed.blahaj.zone 1 points 3 days ago (1 children)

I don't understand your line of questioning. If a bad thing happens then a bad thing happens. Potential for bad things indeed makes companies likely to lock down devices if they provide them, hence the qualifier "not all works would allow it." From an employee perspective, if you have the freedom to do it then more secure OS is more secure.

[–] ViatorOmnium@piefed.social 1 points 3 days ago* (last edited 3 days ago)

I have a work phone.

If didn't have a personal phone, it wouldn't matter.

If it breaks, they have insurance to replace it immediately.

There's no risk it will stop working because I didn't pay the bill.

And I can't install random crap because it's locked down.

And they have options like remotely wipe the device, if they think something weird is happening.

From my side. The phone is turned off the microsecond I clock out.

[–] bajabound@lemmy.world 1 points 3 days ago

I can tell you what we do. Here's your yubikey. Then most find a new phone after a couple weeks.