The rationale behind monitoring employees is that a computer at work is a corporate tool for enhancing the employee’s productivity. Because some people abuse that privilege by sending personal e-mail and viewing movies during working hours, employers feel they have little choice but to monitor what their workers are doing.
 As the number of workers using the Internet for pleasure as well as business grows, so does anxiety among corporate higher-ups worried about productivity and exposure to security risks.Many executives and managers have turned to computer surveillance. Low-cost technology is making it easier than ever for businesses of all sizes to monitor computer misuse among employees.The market for this so-called secure content-management software — which includes applications that monitor Web surfing, e-mail, instant messaging, and even keystrokes — is expected to grow to $6.4 billion by 2007, more than double what it was just three years ago, according to the research firm IDC.”The use of corporate management of employee use of the Internet is widespread today,” said Mike Newman, vice president and general counsel at Websense, a company that makes Internet and desktop security software. “More than half of the Fortune 500 firms alone use our Web-filtering products.”High Stakes The Internet can be tempting to workers who would rather check out eBay than check in with their clients. But by giving employees unmonitored reign over instant messaging, personal e-mail, file downloading, and virtual window shopping, I.T. managers and CIOs risk getting more than they bargained for.In addition to lost productivity and wasted bandwidth resources, companies can be held liable for a broad range of misconduct that includes sexual harassment and the use of unlicensed software.The proliferation of spam is also a huge concern, as it not only consumes valuable I.T. resources, but can also expose a company to legal liability if people find the unwanted messages offensive. Workers also risk introducing viruses into the corporate network by downloading unauthorized files.The possibility of sensitive corporate data being lost or stolen outright is also feeding the upswing in workplace surveillance. Technology such as USB drives and digital-camera storage media make it easier than ever for workers to find, store, and swap information.Corporate America is paying attention. A 2005 report by Proofpoint, an e-mail security company, found that 63 percent of companies with 1,000 or more employees either use or plan to employ staff to look at outbound e-mail. A similar study by the American Management Association found those numbers to be 52 percent in 2003 compared to 24 percent in 2001. Sensitive Issue While the percentage of employees with Internet access at work has remained largely unchanged, more employees are using the Net on the job even if their activities are not work-related. |
