| Virtual Madness! |
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| Written by Emily Marlow Beck |
| Thursday, 07 January 2010 00:00 |
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So, you’ve got this “web guy” working for you who runs all your online sales and manages your website. You really have no clue how he does what he does (after all, you remember the days when paperwork was actually done in paper). But he seems to know what he’s doing and you think he’s doing a good job. That is, your dealership website is getting lots of hits, and the link to your website appears at the top of most Google searches. So, you just sit back and let him do his thing.
For whatever reason, you have to let your “web guy” go. You take his keys, fill out some paperwork, and send him on his way. There’s nothing left for you to do. Out of sight, out of mind, right? Well, if you ask a certain New Jersey Ford dealer, the answer will be a resounding, “No!”
According to a recent news article posted on NorthJersey.com, a New Jersey dealer has recently filed a suit against a former web coordinator, claiming that the coordinator used insider knowledge and passwords that he learned while working at the dealership to deface the dealership’s own website after his termination. The former employee allegedly posted “numerous expletives” and defamatory statements about the dealership on the dealership’s website. Ouch!
According to the news article, the former “web guy” also drastically altered the prices on the dealership website. Not surprisingly, customers visited the dealership asking the dealership to honor the advertised prices. He also allegedly disconnected email links and disabled features that permitted customers to ask for information about specific vehicles. Apparently dealership employees did not frequently visit the dealership website. Consequently the dealership learned about these deeds months after the changes were made.
In the suit, the dealership accuses the ex-employee of fraud, violating the state Computer Related Offenses Act and conversion. The dealership has asked the court to stop the former web coordinator from doing further damage, and seeks compensation, claiming that the dealership suffered “great financial and economic injury in amounts that are continuing,” and its reputation has been “significantly and irreparably damaged.”
This story certainly caught my eye. After all, it is not unusual for dealerships to have a “web guy” who does his “own thing”. It’s also not unusual for the dealer principal or GM to have no idea what the web guy is doing or how he does it.
Maybe it’s time to get a little web savvy. I’m not suggesting that dealers take a class on computer programming at the local community college and I’m not suggesting that dealers should spend less time in the board rooms and more time in the chat rooms. But, I am suggesting that dealers take steps to put some controls in place…even in cyberspace!
I’m sure there are a gazillion ways to do this, and I’m sure your employment lawyer will have some suggestions for you, too. But, here are a few things to think about. Does the dealership take any steps to oversee what content the “web guy” is broadcasting in the dealership’s name? Does the dealership monitor this process, to make sure that the “web guy” is doing what he’s been told to do? (Try loading a few “dummy” email addresses in the database so that all “blasts” will ultimately land in your inbox.) Do all your employees, including your “web guy” get compliance and ethics training? Does the dealership have the ability to “lock out” former employees from accessing the system? And finally, check the dealership website just to make sure things are right and see things from the customers’ point of view. After all, misdeeds in the virtual world can have some consequences in the real one!
Emily Marlow Beck is a partner in the Maryland office of Hudson Cook, LLP. Prior to starting her legal career, she spent years working in a family-owned dealership. Emily can be reached at 410-865-5438 or by email at
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. For information, call 410-865-5411 or visit www.counselorlibrary.com.
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