During collective bargaining negotiations with Hawaiian Airlines, pilot Robert Konop created a password-protected website containing statements critical of his employer and union. Konop sued Hawaiian after learning that a co-worker, who had been authorized to access the website, shared his password with Hawaiian’s vice president, who in turn shared information from the website with an opposing union faction. Reversing an earlier opinion the Ninth Circuit has now ruled that the unauthorized viewing of stored information on Konop’s website didn’t violate the federal Wiretap Act because there was no interception of information as required by the law. However, the court returned the case to the trial court to determine whether Hawaiian’s conduct violated the Stored Communications Act, which prohibits unauthorized access to stored electronic communications. What’s more, the court said that Konop’s website was a protected organizing activity under federal labor laws, and Hawaiian’s viewing of the website might amount to unlawful surveillance.
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