Feb 02, 2026

Harassment at work

Anonymous Monkey's picture
Anonymous Monkey
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I work at a fund where I'm the only female. Recently, I received an email sent from a personal email address by an employee at a financial services firm that says they have been receiving screenshots about me from work for over a year. They work at a publicly traded firm; the firm has a publicly available code of conduct that seems to forbid misuse of non public / confidential information, which I think workplace screenshots from another financial services firm would qualify. 

I'm curious if you guys think this constitutes harassment? HR / manager won't be an option (small firm). Curious what you guys think.

Thanks

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WSO Monkey Bot - Certified Professional
The Addict O
3mo

Based on the most helpful WSO content, your situation raises serious concerns about both harassment and compliance violations. Here's a breakdown:

  1. Harassment:

    • The act of sharing workplace screenshots about you, especially if they are non-public or confidential, can be considered a form of harassment. It demonstrates a targeted and inappropriate focus on you, particularly if the content is being used to undermine or harm your reputation.
    • The consistent "negging" behavior from the individual at your workplace further supports a pattern of harassment. Negging, or making subtly negative comments, can create a hostile work environment, especially when combined with the sharing of screenshots.

  2. Compliance Issues:

    • If the screenshots contain non-public or confidential information, this could be a violation of the publicly traded firm's code of conduct, as well as your own firm's policies. Sharing such information across firms is a serious breach of professional ethics and could have legal implications.
    • The identifiable nature of the email sender and the overlap with the individual at your firm strengthens your case for investigating this as a compliance issue.

  3. Next Steps:

    • Since HR or your manager is not an option, consider consulting with a legal professional who specializes in workplace harassment or compliance issues. They can guide you on how to document the situation and potentially escalate it to the appropriate regulatory bodies if necessary.
    • Preserve all evidence, including the email, screenshots (if accessible), and any records of the negging behavior. This documentation will be crucial if you decide to take legal action or report the issue to a higher authority.

  4. Alternative Reporting Channels:

    • If your firm has a whistleblower or anonymous reporting mechanism, consider using it to report the compliance breach.
    • You might also explore reporting the issue to the compliance department of the publicly traded firm where the email sender works, as they may take action against the individual for violating their code of conduct.

This situation is both complex and serious, so seeking professional advice and taking measured steps to protect yourself is essential.

Sources: Sexual Harassment in the Workplace, Sexual Harassment in the Workplace, Give me your phone or your fired

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PE
Associate 1 in PE - LBOs
Neanderthal
3mo
Most Helpful

Just following up - for those interested, I now have a lawyer. He think this is compliance red flag and harassment/ disparagement based on the email (which had more details). For those who are interested, we are not doing anything now / just wait and see more. But he mentioned for those who don’t want to escalate fully, they can always submit these violations to company’s ethics hotline and generally will have an internal investigation for work information crossed walls without authorization (doesn’t have to be financial data), and on the receiving end it’s also a violation to receive information that’s clearly internal / unauthorized and also disclose its receipt.


Hope it helps to others if ever needed.

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Authored by: Certified Private Equity Professional - 2nd Year AssociateCertified Private Equity Pro
 
Dr. Rahma Dikhinmahas's picture
The Pro PE
3mo

Honestly happy to help w/ any free advice, I'm obligated to say I'm not a currently licensed attorney because I left law long ago to do IB.  But I work with attorneys and they have a tendency to apply the law pretty illogically to facts, so I could be helpful as a clarifying voice if you think that would be useful.

Let's call the banker who emailed you Bob.  Let's call your coworker Preston (need a good old money PE name).

Is your angle that Bob violated his firm's code of conduct by letting you know of screenshots?  And so you'd go after Bob?

That seems like the wrong angle for a few reasons:

  1. His code of conduct doesn't really matter to begin with, he's an at-will employee who can be fired for any reason.  So all you really need to be asking is, was his behavior bad?  Did he even do anything wrong?  Your post makes it sound like he's almost trying to be helpful.  Unclear.
  2. Even if someone thinks his code of conduct really matters here: the code almost certainly refers to (i) trading off confidential information and (ii) betraying his clients' confidence by misusing confidential business info shared with him (e.g. client shares critical info with bank who then shares it with competitor).  It's not designed for your situation, so refer back to #1 where the real question is, is he behaving very inappropriately or not.
  3. The fact that you're getting into the details of his code of conduct, and mentioning totally irrelevant things like the fact that his company trades publicly, is triggering some red flags for me.  Like, the thought process just doesn't seem to make a lot of sense.  You basically imply Preston is off the hook because your company is small??? OK.  And now you need to go after a guy you don't even work with, who was just notifying you?  Something feels off.

But I am actually glad to help, despite my not-entirely-on-your-side-yet tone.  I have a soft spot for people who might be getting bad, expensive legal advice.

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nontraditionalchimpforbillions's picture
Senior Chimp AM
3mo

This angle is a bit ridiculous.  While your gender may not be entirely the reason your comment is ridiculous, it seems to be impacting it.

Best case scenario, someone is sending Bob company information via screenshots of Jane's work or at work. This would be a clear violation of company privacy policy by whoever is sending this to Bob. Jane should get a lawyer and keep track of these messages, and ask for the screenshots to verify.

Worst case scenario, someone is sending unconsented illicit photos of Jane to Bob. (Not uncommon issue for women). Again Jane should get a lawyer, keep track of the communication, and ask for the screenshots.

Less possible best case scenario, Bob is sending way to many emails to Jane and the screenshots are nothing related to spying on Jane or illicit photos so Jane must change jobs.

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PE
Associate 1 in PE - LBOs
Neanderthal
3mo

Mollitia incidunt quas aliquam architecto molestiae ducimus. Reprehenderit ab ea vitae hic id.

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Authored by: Certified Private Equity Professional - 2nd Year AssociateCertified Private Equity Pro

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