Is your company Big Brother?

[manwithnoname]

Manwithnoname, why dont you speak to the IT manager about using a service like messagelabs, they offer content email filtering as well now not just anti spam and anti virus.

G4Z the email thing was sorted out, it was a case of someone having a 'great idea', implementing it, getting lots of complaints then implementing something useable - on both occasions ... see how some people learn from their mistakes

I think when they were going through the planning stage the 'impact accessment' part is not included in the I.T. for dummies handbook...

[ikonia]

there was a study done into the 100 most desirable companies to work for

All (as far as I can recall) all of them "trusted" their employees and showed give and take. The results of the study where very interesting the comercial companies selling a product where all market leaders, which was put down to work commitment from the employees due to the working conditions. The services companies where again market leaders. The only more proffitable companies that where not on the list was finantial institutes.

[GDVS]

set up IE to run through a proxy server. I'm ok though, as I don't use IE (I've removed the proxy settings anyway, just in case I need to use it for something)

If they have competent IT people that won't make a difference, the firewall should transaparently redirect you to the proxy.

[Matt1eD]

Just watched this:

http://www.atomfilms.com/af/content/atom_1352

[Moby-Dick]

It's not the general IT staff that're crap, it's the IT manager. He's scared to try out things he doesn't understand (Linux, wireless networking, etc.), and today he insulted a contractor who's going to be putting cabling in our new building.

He thinks he's a god, everyone else thinks he's a moron.

At the moment unless you have a large IT security budget , Wireless is a thing to stay well clear of. Linux can be used to solve a number of problems , but its not without its own issues. A well set up network is a) OS independant and b) secure.

they dont have the perimter security set up correclty at all. Its not about not using IE etc. You shoudn't have a direct route out of the net work at all in a well configured environment.A nicely configured content filter/application layer proxy is not easy to bypass. It not a case of beign afraid of what you'd call new technology. Its a case of configuring that which you have correctly.

[Michael]

I'm an I.T. Manager for a small telesales company, 7 telesales staff, 1 person to lead them, and a few other people doing various things; Our network is not majorly secure, no transparent proxy so all internet access is straight to the net, wireless secured by WPA-PSK.

We don't monitor e-mail persay, that is also stored on a remote POP server and downloaded to each users inbox (No MS Exchange), but we do have VNC on every computer to do random checks that nobody is on anything they shouldn't be.

However the company is doing well and is most likely to expand, and when this happens and we move location I will be able to design the network how I would prefer it (I can't now because I have no purchasing power, nor the time to recreate what is already working fine when I have other tasks to complete), which should involve a secure Windows Server 2003 enviroment, with all traffic running through a transparent proxy, and all machines using a domain (So I can impliment group policies), as at the moment it is just a workgroup network.

Anyway, this probably illustrates that our working enviroment is indeed quite lax, and as a result everybody enjoys working for the company and there aren't really any problems with staff and managers. Everybody gets along.

[schmunk]

there was a study done into the 100 most desirable companies to work for

All (as far as I can recall) all of them "trusted" their employees and showed give and take. The results of the study where very interesting the comercial companies selling a product where all market leaders, which was put down to work commitment from the employees due to the working conditions. The services companies where again market leaders. The only more proffitable companies that where not on the list was finantial institutes.

In a very prominent recent 'desirable companies' survey, my employer came in the top one...

[wilsonian]

It wasn't a call centre i worked at. you've proberbly all bought something from there (going off the nature of this website).

The topic about emails is a good one. this company X (as i'll now refer to them as) monitors ALL emails. so much so that managers get ALL emails sent by there staff BCC'd to themselves. i also got a verbal 6 month warning for replying to emails from my GF regarding small matters like would i be home that night for tea etc. i can understand if i'd send 10,20 or 100 emails but we're talking one or two a week max. Company X are very good at giving people warnings, beleiving staff should be honoured to work there and should work to their maximum while people who were working at "normal" loads are taking aside or shown the door.

I'm glad people don't think thats good as i was going crazy working there!

[Mutley]

Its a matter of trust, isn't it? After 13 odd years (and I mean odd) working in the IT industry in different companies of different sizes, I can say the one thing I've learned about staff management is this : Treat people like children/slaves/monkeys and they will behave like children/slave/monkeys. Treat them like grown adults who choose to be there, and (by and large), they will behave that way to the benefit of the business.

[Funkstar]

We are extremely lax in the office. There is no screaning on web usage, emails are not screened either (other than for Spam, which isn't exactly reliable at the moment). We start at 9 and if we are repeatedly late then a quiet word is exchanged (usually while having a cig or making coffee etc.). Personal calls are perfectly ok, as long as you don't take the P. Mobiles don't work where we are (a radio black spot), but wouldn't be an issue anyway. I usually have Messenger open and at least one browser minimised with foums etc loaded.

[MAdMaN]

If they have competent IT people that won't make a difference, the firewall should transaparently redirect you to the proxy.

The IT manager is looking at getting new proxy software. Whether it'll be set up like that (like I said in an earlier post, he's a moron) I can't say (though if I had to guess, I'd say probably not).

At the moment unless you have a large IT security budget , Wireless is a thing to stay well clear of.

It's not about security, it's the fact that he has no knowledge of it at all (others in the IT department, and outside of it, do), so is unwilling to even consider it.

Linux can be used to solve a number of problems , but its not without its own issues.

Not thinking about using it to solve problems, but to save money. The IT manager is looking at getting everything legitimate (yes, we have unlicensed software on the computers, mainly Windows and MS Office), which would cost upwards of £50,000. Most of the people in the office only use MS Office, so a copy of Linux and Crossover Office installed on their computers would save the company a lot of money (as well as block them from installing their own software). We also have machines that act only as file servers, so putting Linux on them would save even more.

They dont have the perimter security set up correclty at all. Its not about not using IE etc. You shoudn't have a direct route out of the net work at all in a well configured environment.A nicely configured content filter/application layer proxy is not easy to bypass. It not a case of beign afraid of what you'd call new technology. Its a case of configuring that which you have correctly.

I know that. You know that. It's the IT manager that's having the problems (he's fond of using phrases like 'to the extent whereby...' and 'from a <insert any random word> perspective', which the rest of us in our section of the office laugh about afterwards).

[Moby-Dick]

well give him a slap from me - he is tarnishing our industry with such mental inadequacy

[Mutley]

Sounds like "Pointy-Haired Boss" from Dilbert...

[herulach]

We are extremely lax in the office. There is no screaning on web usage, emails are not screened either (other than for Spam, which isn't exactly reliable at the moment). We start at 9 and if we are repeatedly late then a quiet word is exchanged (usually while having a cig or making coffee etc.). Personal calls are perfectly ok, as long as you don't take the P. Mobiles don't work where we are (a radio black spot), but wouldn't be an issue anyway. I usually have Messenger open and at least one browser minimised with foums etc loaded.

How the hell can you be late for work on an oil rig? (what i assume you do, although maybe youre a fisherman, or jane macdonald)

[Funkstar]

How the hell can you be late for work on an oil rig?

You can sleep in thats how (i do it regularly, although i do have a nack of waking at exactly 07:00 when we start shift )

I was actually meaning when i'm in the office in Aberdeen, which is rarely and as little as possible these days

[MAdMaN]

Sounds like "Pointy-Haired Boss" from Dilbert...

Coincidentally, I've started wearing my Dilbert tie to work again.