Despite millions of employees being called back to the office—even on a partial basis—the desire for remote work remains incredibly strong in the post-pandemic era. Recent polls from Gallup and Pebl suggest 90% to 98% of employees want to continue to work from home, or at least in a hybrid setup, but many employers are pushing back.
Popular or not, businesses are tightening the reins on remote work—and it’s about to become even easier for your company to track whether you’re at the office. That’s because there’s a new feature being released on a program that millions of workers use every day to communicate. What is it, and how will it affect you? We talked to Jakub Křoustek, a threat operations analyst for Norton, best known for its suite of cybersecurity products, to find out.
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What is the newest way for companies to spy on you?
Microsoft Teams is introducing a new feature that automatically detects your office location when you connect to the company Wi-Fi. This tool is designed to help organizations verify employee attendance and track who is physically present in a specific building.
Reader’s Digest reached out to Microsoft for an interview, but the request was declined. But an email from a communications specialist at Microsoft’s agency suggested the feature was intended to help workers locate and coordinate with fellow employees and then connect in person.
Many employees, however, feel this is an invasion of privacy, essentially turning the popular Teams communication and collaboration platform into a snitch that tells bosses whether staff are in the office or not.
How, exactly, will Teams track your work location?
When users connect to their organization’s Wi-Fi, Microsoft Teams will soon be able to automatically update their work location to reflect the specific building they’re working from. It’ll also have the ability to detect your location through computer “peripherals,” like monitors. That’s different from how it works now, where employees have to manually set their work location.
In other words, if you’re at home or at a coffee shop, the feature will know you’re not on campus. It has not yet been confirmed whether the tool will be used across all operating systems, including Windows, Mac and possibly mobile devices (iOS and Android), but it appears to be tied more to the location than the device.
When will the feature roll out?
Microsoft Teams will roll out this optional feature by December 2025.
Will your computer automatically start tracking your location?
No. Microsoft confirmed that this Teams feature will be off by default. If a company’s admins enable it, employees will need to provide consent.
What other tracking systems might your boss be using?
The forthcoming Microsoft Teams feature is just one of many workplace surveillance tools an employer may leverage.
“There are various legal software solutions available that enable companies to monitor activity on work devices [that] can monitor network activity, keystrokes, GPS location and more,” Křoustek says. “Some employers may use this to monitor activity and log-in time on device with the purpose of tracking performance and employee presence.”
He says this type of monitoring is “fairly common since the COVID-19 pandemic, when most employers implemented home office [protocols] to enable employees to continue working.” Because employees weren’t sitting in a physical office or cube, employers looked to tech to fill the gap.
“Lacking the ability to monitor employees directly, some companies started utilizing monitoring software to enable remote monitoring of employees and their performance,” Křoustek says. It’s hard to quantify exactly how many employers use monitoring technology, but according to a 2024 study by Raconteur in partnership with Attest, just over 80% of workers surveyed feel they are being monitored by their employers to a moderate or high degree.
What’s the downside of using tech that snitches on employees?
Corporate surveillance technology that tattles on employees can damage trust and morale, fostering resentment and potentially leading to higher turnover, as workers feel they are being treated with suspicion rather than respect. Ironically, monitoring can increase employee stress and anxiety, negatively impacting productivity rather than boosting it.
“Building trust in digital environments begins with openness about the tools we use and how they affect others,” Křoustek says. “Whether you’re a parent monitoring a child or an employer monitoring staff, disclosure fosters trust.”
Are employers obligated to tell employees about monitoring tools?
In the United States, there is no federal law that explicitly requires employers to notify staff about monitoring. “In Canada, laws generally place greater emphasis on reasonable notice, proportionality and transparency when collecting or using employee data,” Křoustek says.
But in the U.S., those rules are set at the state level: “States such as New York, Connecticut and Delaware mandate clear communication or written notice when monitoring occurs,” says Křoustek. Your state may have different laws and disclosure requirements.
“While many organizations acknowledge that some activities may be tracked, this information often appears only in the fine print, [and] as our world grows increasingly connected, embracing transparency should be the standard for maintaining healthy digital relationships,” adds Křoustek.
Do flexible work environments yield better productivity?
It depends on whom you ask.
The prevailing evidence from numerous studies suggests that remote work and flexible work conditions can significantly promote higher productivity for many employees and organizations. For example, according to research from Activtrak, a business intelligence company, employees report a 35% to 40% productivity boost at home compared with working at an office.
Other advantages include higher output, reduced distractions, a better work-life balance, the lack of a stressful daily commute and higher job satisfaction and morale.
So why are companies mandating workers go back to the office?
Businesses are mandating a return to the cubicle primarily due to what they say is a desire to strengthen organizational culture and boost collaboration and innovation. Many executives feel that maintaining control and oversight is easier when employees are visible, and there are significant financial and real estate pressures to justify the expense of vast, underutilized corporate office spaces.
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About the expert
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Why trust us
Reader’s Digest has published hundreds of articles on personal technology, arming readers with the knowledge to protect themselves against cybersecurity threats and internet scams as well as revealing the best tips, tricks and shortcuts for computers, cellphones, apps, texting, social media and more. For this piece, Marc Saltzman tapped his 30+ year experience as a technology journalist, the author of several books and the host of the syndicated Tech It Out radio show and podcast to ensure that all information is accurate and offers the best possible advice to readers. Read more about our team, our contributors and our editorial policies.
Sources:
- Jakub Křoustek, threat operations analyst for Norton; interviewed, October 2025
- Gallup: “Hybrid Work in Retreat? Barely.”
- Pebl: “66 Must-Know Remote Work Statistics for 2025”
- Microsoft: “Microsoft 365 Roadmap”
- Financial Post: “Employee surveillance is rising and it’s a legal powder keg”
- Raconteur: “What staff really think about employee monitoring”
- ActivTrak: “Comparing Productivity for Remote Work vs. In-Office Employees”
- The Employer Report: “Check Yourself Before You Wreck Yourself: New York and Other States Have Big Plans For Employer Use of AI and Other Workplace Monitoring Tools”
- The Economic Times: “Microsoft Teams turns snitch, will tell your boss if you’re in office or not”
- Reddit: “Remote work vs. in-office: Which is more productive?”
- The Guardian: “The great divide: are office workers more productive than those at home?”
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