At work, we are really not supposed to use the internet for anything other than work…
but, as expected… everyone does…
We have a very small IT dept. (me)
so the manager came up to me and said that the owner says that there have been too many people playing on the internet and not working, and would like to know if there is a way to record what websites everyone goes to…
This will make work very dull…
Do I tell them that there is no such thing? and having them find out one day that I was wrong… making me look dumb…
or should I say… yeah that is a great idea… instal some software, but manage it so no one really gets in trouble…
or should I just tell them how to do it, and stop playing on the internet at work???
I’d tell him that sure, such software exists, but it takes a while to install and/or is expensive, and some people would still be able to get around it anyway.
You could search Google and see if anyone has sued their employer for spying on stuff like that. Then tell your boss he might be sued. (They may have tried and lost, but you don’t have to tell your boss they lost.)
The owner of the company (obviously) owns the company. (duh.)
The manager has been charged to manage the owners business. (another very obvious truth)
You are being paid to manage their computer technology. They’ve given you a directive to stop abuse of company time.
Obey orders.
FWIW I think your bosses should establish rules of internet use.
The rules should be announced, and an anouncement made that enforcement is soon to follow. (give the offenders a chance to cease wasting company time)
I don’t think that rules and their enforcement should be used as a blunt instrument, but if people are using company time and resources to goof off, they are violating the basic implied contract of the workplace.
Boss-pays you a set rate to produce product
Employee-produces said product
I like ** EasyPhil’s** idea.
If you were working for me and you did Suggestion #1 and I found out, I would fire you on the spot. Not only were you stealing from the company (time spent on company business in exchange for money is the basic transaction here), but you lied to me as well. No, I don’t recommend this course of action.
Suggestion #2 doesn’t sound much better. I personally have a problem with people doing less than they are capable of at work.
I would go with Suggestion #3 - do the job you are getting paid to do. I have no problem with your co-workers being expected to work for their money, too. That’s why they call it “work”, not “play”.
Well, at the very least you should close the Kazaa and Quake ports on the firewall. Then, I’d suggest to the boss that actively filtering non-work related sites (while leaving work related sites accessible) is a loosing battle, and it would be better to have your firewall/proxy log what sort of traffic it’s routing.
Of course, monitering these logs is too time-consuming an operation for a 1-man IT team to do. So then I would suggest that, if there is a specific employee that he’s worried about, you could look specifically for his/her traffic, and report your findings.
This may also be a morality test from your boss. Do not lie to him.
i like what LordVor said. that’s what they do here and it works great. a few sites that i use have been restricted, but i can pretty much do whatever i need to do. and this machine gets checked most often cause there are 6 people using it, one person any any one time, 24 hrs.
