What To Be Careful Of When Using Your Computer At Work

It is sad to say, but we do live in the age of Big Brother. It is amazing what people can find out about your travels on the web or even your own computer. People often don't want to believe it, but your boss really does have the ability to know what you do at work. Everything from the webpages you visit, to the files you open, to the e-mail's you send and receive. There is software out there that covers just about everything. There is even a program that will capture every key stroke from the moment you log on to your workstation until the moment you log off.

What does this mean to you?

If you are not out at work, you need to be careful We all want to believe that our bosses or network folks don't either want to capture information about us or wouldn't even know that this stuff exist. The truth is that a large amount of companies are using the latest technologies to find out what you do all day. If you open up a MS Word document and start typing away, every key you hit, including the backspace key, can be captured and recorded. There is software out there that will take a screen capture of your entire window at set points during the day. If you happen to be unlucky and opened just one personal e-mail during that time, you could be in trouble.

You need to find out what your companies policy is on personal use of the computer. Some companies have a strict zero tolerance policy on personal use. Even if you visit one website that is not work related, you could be fired. Other companies limit personal use. If you don't abuse it, they won't worry either. The problem with some policies is that they are very vague. There is no set law on the books (as of this writing) that either grants or limits the rights of both employer and employee across the board.

It's Not Just The Cache Anymore

Years ago, people could only find out things based on your browsers cache. The cache stores a copy of every web page you visit. It is useful because you don't have to download the graphics for a page you visit often, every time you go there. The problem is that anyone on your computer or who has access to your computer on a network, can also see what pages you have visited. If you were to look in your browser's cache right now, you would find a copy of every image that was downloaded when you visited this site. You will also find reference to your visit in your history folder (with Netscape, I.E., etc.). That means that someone could come along, click on your history and be able to tell that you visited www.dcdykes.com during the hours of ????.

Many people clear the cache and history every time they log off. This is a good step if you really have been visiting sites you shouldn't or don't want to risk other people knowing about. It will slow down your travels on the net though. Each page will have to be fully loaded the next time you visit. That's the trade off.

Remember though, that isn't the only way that people can find out where you have been. Many offices have ways to track every webpage that every employee visits at any given time. So, clearing your cache will prevent someone from find the information on your hard drive, but not erase all evidence of what you were doing.

What Solutions Do You Have?

I know this isn't the most popular response I will give, but, you may want to think twice about using your work computer for personal use unless your office allows this. If you know that you could be fired or even just get in trouble for spending personal time on your work computer, don't do it. This is really tough for people who do not have access to a computer at home. You just need to think about your job and what is more important. Another thing you can do is to speak with your supervisor and find out if you are allowed to use your computer for personal use during lunch or after work. Again, if you aren't out at work, this may not be a good idea if you are visiting gay related sites, but at least you have permission to use the computer.

There are also programs out that to combat this. You can install programs that will block software used to capture information. You have to be careful here too though. Many companies have a policy where you are not allowed to install software on your workstation without permission. Even running those cute little files that we get in e-mail, like the Elf's bowling, is against the user policy at some companies. Find out what the policy is at your job.

You may also want to be really nice to the folks who take care of the network at your office. Take them out to lunch and mention that you read how someone got caught Instant Messaging a friend about what a jerk the boss was. Find out if they know how to do that and then see if your company does this. You may even learn a lot more about computers. Network people usually love to talk about what they do. Most people never both to ask. (BTW: Network folks aren't bad people. I'm one. We just tend to have a lot of work to do and can't always take part in water cooler conversations. So be nice to us ).

Final Thoughts

Just think about what you are doing at work and how it may affect you. And think twice before you start typing that e-mail to your coworker or friend that explains all the reasons why you think your boss is a jerk or how you weren't really sick the last time you called in. You never know who is watching.

Contribute

Have an experience with getting caught at work doing something you weren't supposed to? Do you have some advice for people? Do you know what the most common used programs are in the office to spy on coworkers? Let's us know and we will post it here. Just use the Online Contact form or send me an e-mail. Let me know what name you wanted used with your comments and I'll try and add it here.