What are employee's rights against employer who went through pictures on my cell phone without permission

A verbal warning may be the appropriate discipline if this employee has an otherwise clean record. Discipline should be graduated, not a matter of one mistake and you're out. What are you doing carrying around explicit pictures on your cell phone anyway? Put them some place truly private and you'll be exempt from peeping toms.

Is this phone provided by the employer? If yes, the employer, through its managers, may have a right to review the phone. And if you have sexually explicit images on the employer's property, the employer may have liability in some circumstances.

If this is your personal phone, you likely should look into locking the phone up. Many phones have security features that once activated require a person to enter codes before the person can do anything with the phone.

You may have rights given in your state's laws. You can review your facts and options with an attorney in your state.