Category Archives: Industry News

Stop A Pornography Surfing Problem Before It Starts: Why Monitoring Is Important

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USA Today reported today that “several top Security and Exchange Commission staffers surfed porn sites as economy teetered.”  While many of us like to think that “everyone” knows it’s inappropriate to surf porn at work using the office computer, time and time again stories like these still pop up.  While whether or not to allow social networking in the office and how to control the use of these sites seems to be the big surfing topic today, apparently we still cannot forget about pornography.  Pornography poses several risks to businesses and government agencies. These include productivity losses, security issues and legal liability.  No matter how strict or lenient your acceptable use policy is, one thing is clear.  Communicating your Web-use policy and regularly monitoring employees’ Web use is important.  You want to stop the problem before it starts or turns into an employee spending “up to eight hours a day looking at and downloading pornography.”

Source: https://content.usatoday.com/communities/ondeadline/post/2010/04/ig-report-several-top-sec-staffers-surfed-porn-sites-as-economy-teetered/1

March Madness, Again

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It’s baaaacccccckkkkkk! Happens every year. March Madness, that is. Everybody loves it. (Well, almost everybody.)

The excitement! The fun! The astounding fast breaks, slam dunks and three-pointers! And oh yes, watching it all unfold on your office computer.

Who could not like it? Well, for openers, the overworked folks who have to worry about workforce productivity, bandwidth costs, security issues and legal risks.

Here’s just one of many worrisome predictions, “FIRST WEEK OF TOURNEY COULD COST $1.8 BILLION.” It comes from the Challenger March Madness Report. The report also states, “The men’s college basketball tournament, better known as March Madness, marks the arrival of several other annual rituals: employee-organized office pools, a potential dip in productivity and a marked decline in Internet speed, as workers soak up bandwidth watching live streaming broadcasts of the tournament games during office hours.”

Not exactly good news for businesses and government agencies during this time of troublesome economic conditions and serious budget worries.

Maybe it’s time to revisit your AUP and rebrief your workers on the negative impact their fun could have on the organization and ultimately on their own job security. And if your organization doesn’t already have a robust Internet usage management solution in place, it may just be time to look into it seriously.

Wavecrest’s Control List includes CBSSports.com and NCAA.com under the Sports category, and for those using Cyfin, access to these sites will be monitored under Sports. If you want to only block and/or monitor the live video, you can create a custom category to block and/or monitor www.ncaasports.com/mmod/player.

How Much Personal Internet Surfing in the Workplace is Too Much?

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It depends on what your organization considers “acceptable.” Research shows that the average person spends around one hour per day on non-work related internet surfing.   It also shows that the majority of viruses enter via Internet surfing.

Wavecrest’s Cyfin and CyBlock products are configurable to fit your organization’s acceptable use policy. You can set acceptability ratings and visit thresholds to each category.  To set acceptability ratings, go to the Advanced Settings – Category Settings – Classification screen in your product.

With CyBlock you can select to “block” or “allow” each category and configure blocking by hour on the Advanced Settings – Filter Settings – Block Web Categories screen.  You can also configure real-time filtering with our deep packet analysis for content types and file extensions on the Advanced Settings – Filter Settings – Block Web Content screen in your CyBlock product.

Read more about personal surfing in the workplace on Business Blogs.

Few Employers Have a Social Networking Policy in Place

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A recent report by Manpower found that very few companies have policies regarding social networking use.  In fact, only 29% of US companies have a formal social networking policy in place.  Social networks are not only time wasters, but they can pose serious security risks or damage a company’s reputation if employees post confidential or harmful material about the company.  No matter what an employer’s stance is on social networking use in the workplace, it is highly recommended to have a policy in place and educate employees on that policy. Joseph P. Paranac, a shareholder in LeClairRyan’s Labor and Employment Group has offered Web-use policy suggestions on what companies should include.

If you’re unsure whether or not you want to block social networking, we have also written a paper that addresses the issues surrounding social networking use in the workplace, the importance of creating a policy, and monitoring or filtering employee’s Web use according to that policy.

White Paper: Social Networking or Social Not-working?

Source: https://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007493

Don’t Forget to Update Your Web-Use Policy

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There has been a lot of buzz surrounding the use of social networks, i.e., Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.,  in the workplace recently.  This is a great reminder to all organizations to take a look at their current Web-use policies and update them.

Reuters covered a recent seminar put on by LeClairRyanon covering “Key Issues in Labor & Employment Law,” where the importance of a policy for social networks was discussed.  The speaker, Joseph P. Paranac, a shareholder in LeClairRyan’s Labor and Employment Group, stated, “Inappropriate and unwise use of online social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter is a growing source of liability risk for employers, including discrimination, defamation and retaliation claims.”

He went on to offer some Web-use policy suggestions for employers.

“In order to have a successful policy on the use of social networking sites, Paranac told the audience, employers should stipulate that:

  • Employees may not comment or use any confidential information about the employer or discuss internal matters.
  • Use of online social networks should be limited to non-working hours, unless the use is for legitimate business purposes.
  • Employees’ comments should not be discriminatory or harassing.
  • Similarly, they should not be disparaging or defamatory to the employer’s business.

The veteran attorney also offered the following elements of a successful Internet and e-mail policy:

  • Employees should be trained on electronic communications equipment parameters and prohibitions.
  • All business systems and company-issued electronic communication equipment and data belong to the employer.
  • Systems and equipment must be used for appropriate and lawful business purposes only.
  • Employee use is subject to review/monitoring by the employer and employees who use employer equipment have no expectation of privacy.
  • Use of systems and equipment for harassment, discrimination, or defamation is strictly prohibited.
  • Disclosure of employer confidential information is strictly prohibited.
  • Warn employees of the penalties or policy violations.
  • Obtain a signed acknowledgment of employee receipt of policy.
  • Include a procedure for reporting violations.
  • Enforce the policy!”

Read the full article: TWEET: ‘I’m About to Testify in My Defamation Case!’

Online Holiday Shopping: Here We Go Again

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It’s that time of year again! The big Christmas shopping spree. As in previous years, the online version ‘officially’ starts on Cyber Monday – the day after the big T-Day weekend. And now this year we’ve got Green Monday (December 7) and Brown Monday (December 14). These are days on which, like Cyber Monday, online retailers put on a full court press to draw in ‘surfer-shoppers.’

And the whole circus runs through New Year’s Day.

The volume can be huge and problematical for employers. A survey conducted for ISACA, an association of 86,000 information technology professionals, states in part:

“Employees plan to spend nearly two full working days (14.4 hours) on average shopping online from a work computer this holiday season. One in 10 plans to spend more than 30 hours shopping online at work. Convenience (34%) and boredom (23%) are the biggest motivators.”

“… the second annual “Shopping on the Job: Online Holiday Shopping and Workplace Internet Safety” survey found that half of those surveyed plan to holiday shop online using a work computer.

“Dangers of shopping online include viruses, spam and phishing attacks that invade the workplace, resulting in financial losses due to reduced productivity and destruction or compromise of corporate data.”

In addition to generating network security and performance issues, online holiday shopping is a huge productivity waster for businesses. When workers are shopping, they’re not ‘minding the store.’ Accordingly, this is a good time for all types of organizations to take stock of their Web-use management practices and seek help if needed.

Wavecrest Computing is ready to provide that help.

Wavecrest’s Cyfin and CyBlock products and services help all types of organizations manage and control inappropriate and risky personal surfing of all kinds, including shopping. Cyfin and CyBlock products do this by monitoring and/or filtering employees’ Web use and reporting on the activity by content categories, e.g., shopping, sports, games, and others. Of particular note, with regard to holiday shopping, CyBlock products can be set up to block Web access by categories and by hour so employees can access shopping sites on their lunch break or after hours. This approach can help sustain morale while minimizing the risks associated with online shopping.

For 13 years, Wavecrest Computing has been providing Internet filtering and monitoring solutions to business, government, and educational organizations worldwide.  Wavecrest’s customer base includes well-known names such as the HP, Procter and Gamble, Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway, Bridgestone, Mazda and many others.

Online Video Viewing is Up

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According to Nielsen’s “VideoCensus,” online video viewing is up this year compared to last.  Total video streaming was up 31.4%, and viewers spent an average of about 3.5 hours watching online video in July.  This is an increase of 42.2% from 2008.  The most popular video Web site was YouTube with over 7 billion streams in July 2009. A simple 5 minute video on YouTube uses 12,500 kilobytes in bandwidth.

Online video viewing often happens in the workplace where users have access to a faster Internet connection.  This can cause network slowdowns or latency in the workplace if abused.

The below Cyfin and CyBlock reports can be used to track bandwidth usage by users and identify potentially troublesome sites.  These reports can help you anticipate overload possibilities and the need (or lack of need) to purchase additional capacity.  If abuse can be detected and brought under control, the cost of additional capacity may be avoided.

  • Site Analysis Bandwidth Report – Focusing on kilobytes by classification, category, and users, this report gives a good overview of whether the majority of bandwidth consumption was acceptable and which categories and users used the most bandwidth.
  • Top Bandwidth Sites Report – This report shows the top bandwidth consuming sites and their categories for the specified time period.
  • Network Information Report – Find out your busiest time of day for Internet use with this report.  It shows visits and kilobytes read by hour.

Source: https://www.emarketer.com/Article.aspx?R=1007247

Concerned About Bandwidth Usage During March Madness?

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Bandwidth is a main concern for many businesses during this March Madness season.  Many must deal with employees using company resources to enter online office pools, blog about the top seeds, and watch live streaming games that take place throughout March and early April.

In fact, CBSsports.com is expecting even more viewers online this year. They expect the number of unique viewers for March Madness on Demand, to rise 50% to 7.2 million viewers.  With the massive number of sports Web sites and streaming games available, companies can expect to see a considerable drain on employee productivity and network bandwidth during the NCAA Tournament.

While you may or may not allow your employees to follow the games at work, you will want to ensure that it doesn’t interfere with your network.  Wavecrest Computing offers Internet filtering by category or site, white list filtering, real-time web monitoring and detailed Web-use reports on a particular category or site and bandwidth usage.  Some reports you can use to monitor bandwidth or access to sports sites are:

  • Site Analysis Bandwidth Report
  • Network Information Report
  • Category Audit Detail Report
  • Category Audit Summary Report
  • Site Audit Detail Report

Source: https://www.marketingshift.com/2009/3/cbs-expects-7-millon-online.cfm

Increased Visits to Porn Sites At Work

With high unemployment rates and the potential of them rising even more, you would think that employees are doing whatever they can to be productive and keep their jobs.  Instead, according to a study by Nielson Online in October 2008, visits to porn sites at work is up 23 percent from the previous year.  This means that almost one quarter of employees are visiting porn sites during the workday.  “Hits to porn sites are highest during office hours than at any other time of day,” according to M.J. McMahon, publisher of AVN Online magazine, which tracks the adult video industry.

Some analysts believe that it has to do with the declining economy and people looking for an escape, while others speculate that it has to do with a younger generation in the workforce that has grown up accepting porn as a part of life.

Regardless, porn surfing at work poses a major legal liability risk for businesses.  This type of activity puts the employer at serious risk of being sued by other workers who are offended or upset by being exposed to pornographic images. Such suits usually take the form of ‘sexual harassment’ or ‘hostile workplace’ litigation and can be very costly in terms of damage to reputation as well as legal costs.  In addition to the legal costs, businesses also have to be concerned about costs due to loss of productivity.

In fact, the Senate Finance Committee is investigating the misuse of NSF computers by government officials to view online pornographic material. In one instance, the report cites an NSF “senior official” who allegedly spent 20 percent of his work hours “viewing sexually explicit” Web sites. This amounts to a potential loss of $58,000 in employee compensation.

According to Salary.com, the average employee wastes 2.09 hours a day on the Internet.  An average administrative employee costs a company $37.84 per hour according to the U.S. Department of Labor Bureau of Labor Statistics.  For a company with 1,000 employees, this amounts to over $18 million in productivity losses in a year.

A simple and cost-effective way employers can help ensure that employees use the Internet for productive purposes and not visit sites that pose a legal liability threat to the company is to filter and/or monitor Web access.  Wavecrest Computing offers Internet filtering and monitoring products CyBlock and Cyfin, to fit any organization’s needs.  The average cost for a Wavecrest product with a 1000-employee license is $3,500 per year. This is less than two tenths of one percent of the cost of lost productivity, making an Internet filtering or monitoring solution well worth the investment.

Sources:
https://www.newsweek.com/id/171279
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/01/28/grassley-launches-inquiry-widespread-porn-charges-nsf/

More Cyber Monday Shopping Expected This Year

Cyber Monday is just around the corner, and this year, almost 84 percent of online retailers are planning Cyber Monday promotions.  Cyber Monday takes place the first Monday after Thanksgiving (December 1), i.e., the first day employees are back to work.  Last year, Americans made hundreds of online purchases and spent $733 million on Cyber Monday.

This year will not be any different, and in fact, more shoppers will probably be looking for online deals on Cyber Monday.  A survey conducted by BIGresearch found that 70 percent of young adults 18-34 with Internet access will shop at work.

Cyber Monday shopping and holiday shopping are huge productivity wasters for businesses.  Wavecrest’s products can help you block online shopping at work.  You can monitor and/or filter Web use with your Cyfin or CyBlock product by category, e.g., shopping, entertainment, sports, etc.  Wavecrest’s CyBlock products also allow you to block Web access by hour so that you can allow employees to access shopping sites on their lunch break or after hours.