Marshall - 10:53 pm on Nov 20, 2012 (gmt 0)

Is that "expectation" on the part of someone who knows how things work, or "expectation" on the part of an ordinary human?

Actually, on the part of the ordinary human. And usually "reasonable" is before "expectation."

I think even an ordinary human does not reasonably expect emails and such to be secure or private, even if that is their intention (See Gen. Petraeus' current scandal). Even putting a disclaimer on an email saying "This is intended for the recipient..." is basically meaningless as they generally appear after the content of the email and they are not legally binding in most areas. I would also speculate that most TOS, regarding services on or via the net, do not guarantee security and or privacy. Seriously, how can they.

Marshall