Short answer: employee monitoring software records when people work and, depending on the tool, which apps they use and periodic screenshots. Used openly, it supports payroll, client billing and workload planning.
- Work time
- App and site names
- Activity level
- Screenshots
- Keystrokes
- Passwords
- Anything on a break
- Anything while paused
What it usually records
- Time: when work starts, stops and pauses.
- Activity: how active the keyboard and mouse were, as a level, not as content.
- Apps and sites: which were in front, and for how long.
- Screenshots: at a set or random interval, sometimes blurred.
Good tools do not record what you type, and they mask passwords.
What it is used for
Accurate payroll, billing clients for real hours, spotting overloaded people, and giving remote teams a shared picture of the day.
What separates a good tool from a bad one
- The employee knows it is on and agreed to it.
- The employee can see their own data.
- They can pause it, and breaks are private.
- Restricted apps (banking, personal chat) are skipped.
Without these, monitoring turns into surveillance and good people leave.
How it differs from a simple timer
A timer records what people enter. Monitoring adds evidence of the work, which matters for remote teams, contractors and billable hours. See time tracking vs employee monitoring.
Is it legal?
Usually yes, with notice and a clear purpose. Details in our US and UK overview.
TrustHours is built around consent: employees approve tracking, see their own data and can pause.
How it works