Workers at Edinburgh-based games studio Build A Rocket Boy (BARB) have started legal action against the company over concerns of data protection violations, after claims that management installed surveillance software on their devices without their knowledge.

The action, led by members of the IWGB Game Workers Union, alleges that BARB’s use of the software violates data protection laws and the “workforce’s basic dignity”, claiming that the use of the software goes beyond legitimate productivity monitoring or safeguarding security by recording individuals in their homes without their consent.

Earlier this year, Games Industy.biz reported that BARB workers had only discovered the use of the Teramind surveillance software after noticing their hardware and game development software bogging down, with management asking staff to sign an updated privacy policy after the fact.

At a January all-hands meeting leaked to the press, co-CEOs Mark Gerhard and Leslie Benzies confirmed that Teramind, which tracks users’ key strokes, records screen activity and captures microphone audio, had been installed without workers’ knowledge, calling this “cybersecurity software” which the firm hoped to remove within three months.  

According to the IWGB’s complaint, the surveillance software was finally uninstalled in March after more than 40 workers filed a collective grievance demanding its removal.

However, the union claims that the company failed to meet other demands for transparency and accountability by refusing to explain what data was collected, how it was used and why the software was installed in the first place.

IWGB members are escalating the matter through ACAS and the Information Commissioner’s Office, while on 12th April, the union filed separate legal claims on behalf of its members over BARB’s alleged mishandling of a redundancy process that took place last summer.

That follows a turbulent period for the Scottish games studio, with its latest release, MindsEye, being widely panned by critics and suffering poor sales performance, with 300 staff members later being made redundant. 

In an open letter last year, IWGB members at BARB put MindsEye’s failure down to Benzies and Gerhard’s poor management, with allegations that they refused to listen to staff and demanded excessive overtime amounting to eight hours per week for every single employee.

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The CEOs also suffered from what the union described as “escalating paranoia” over saboteurs amongst the workforce, though Gerhard earlier claimed that after an investigation the firm had found “overwhelming evidence” of organised espionage and corporate sabotage around the release of MindsEye. 

If successful, the IWGB said its legal claim, which includes allegations of unlawful blacklisting, detriment, and failure to engage in collective consultations, could cost BARB millions.

“Build A Rocket Boy’s toxic culture of secrecy and micromanaging is one of the worst I’ve seen in a 20-year career in the gaming industry,” said Chris Wilson, IWGB member and lead cinematic animator at Build a Rocket Boy.

“While they have conceded to our headline demand of removing Teramind from our devices, many questions still remain about their actions. 

“It can only be assumed this software was added as a part of their effort to micromanage us, a product of their mistrust of their employees. It created an atmosphere of unease, something that doesn’t lead to great video game production.”

DIGIT has reached out to BARB for comment.