Delete skype for business conversation history

DELETE SKYPE FOR BUSINESS CONVERSATION HISTORY FREE

The informal, free flow of thought that attracts many employees to use SkypeР’В for collaboration in the first place,Р’В canР’В documentР’В conversationsР’В in a searchable transcript that could be used byР’В civil or criminalР’В litigators as evidence against the company. ThisР’В real-worldР’В exampleР’В illustratesР’В theР’В hiddenР’В dangerР’В ofР’В Skype. After the customer commenced litigation, these conversations were ultimately turned over to the lawyers for the customer duringР’В discovery andР’В were highly damaging to the company at trial. The company, unfortunately, had never changed the default Skype settings, which stored these conversations in each employeeРІР‚в„ўs Outlook folder. Word quickly spread across the company about the possibility of litigation, and employees began speculating with each other via Skype, leaving a virtual conversation history the entire time. In turn, the subordinates did the same with their team members. The companyРІР‚в„ўs executive teamР’В usedР’В SkypeР’В IM sessions with various subordinates to gather information about the customer. Instead of meeting in-person to discuss the customerРІР‚в„ўs problems, the companyРІР‚в„ўs executive team and employees initiated a group Skype conversation to discuss what happened and the companyРІР‚в„ўs position. Real-World ExampleР’В of Skype Messages UsedР’В AtР’В TrialР”Р„ recent real-world example of the dark side of Skype involved a company who had received a demand letter from a dissatisfied customer threatening a lawsuit over services performed. In-house counsel and outside counsel need to assume employees are using instant messaging and be aware of the legal risks.

While most employees understand that what they say in an email can come back to haunt them, many employees are less restrained when it comes to what they say in IM conversations. Just like traditional emails, conversations on Skype and similar IM platforms can be used as evidence in Court against the company, if properly authenticated and relevant. Seems like a great business feature for your company, right? Well, maybe not, especially if your employees are discussing sensitive business issues in Skype that may wind up in litigation.

Skype preserves these conversations in Outlook for months or even years after they took place. You can easily findР’В specific conversations by navigating to my Outlook Conversation History Folder and entering search terms that would have come up in the conversation. SinceР’В I have not changed the default Skype settings,Р’В OutlookР’В keeps a searchableР’В electronicР’В transcript ofР’В what was РІР‚СљsaidРІР‚Сњ byР’В all participants in my Skype conversations,Р’В the names of the participants, along withР’В helpfulР’В time and date stamps. SkypeРІР‚в„ўs default setting capturesР’В all ofР’В your IM sessions as a transcript and automatically stores them asР’В items inР’В your Outlook conversations folder.Р”В«elow are my current Skype default settings. Skype is MicrosoftРІР‚в„ўsР’В business solution forР’В IM, conferencing and file sharing, interfacing withР’В bothР’В Outlook and Office 365. The benefits of IM for businesses, however, doР’В not come without dangers and unintended consequences, especially in situations that haveР’В ledР’В the company into litigation. Unlike a phone call or in-person conversation,Р’В however,Р’В IM sessions can be easily recorded. When an IM conversation is over, the participants РІР‚СљendРІР‚Сњ the conversation by closing the IM session.

IM conversations tend to beР’В candid and free-flowing, without a lot of structure. IM increasesР’В workplace efficiency, allowing colleagues to communicate through rapid back-and-forth discussions and on-demand file-sharing. Employees leverage the speed and flexibility ofР’В IMР’В as an alternative toР’В more traditional methods, such as phone and email, to get their work done. IMР’В applications areР’В often free, come imbedded with Office 365, and areР’В accessible on employeesРІР‚в„ў computers and smartphones making access possible from wherever your employees happen to be. IMР’В platforms in the workplace have increased in popularity in recent years as the single-office model is less common, and more often employees are spread across multiple time zones and locations or are simply working remotely. Today, many modern employees are using instant messaging (РІР‚СљIMРІР‚Сњ) as a РІР‚Сљvirtual water coolerРІР‚Сњ or РІР‚Сљvirtual conference roomРІР‚Сњ to collaborate and share information and files with co-workers and customers in real-time, using platforms such as Skype for Business, Microsoft Teams, Slack and GoogleРІР‚в„ўs Hangouts. The days of face-to-face meetings between managers and employees in conference rooms or popping into someoneРІР‚в„ўs office to discuss a project are no longer the norm. Instant messaging applications are increasingly presentР’В in todayРІР‚в„ўs corporate world and a popular form of communications both internally, between company employees, and externally with clients and partner organizations.

Delete skype for business conversation history