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Tech companies are helping bosses monitor everything you do at work

44 points by jrepinc 7y ago

Farbodkhz 7y ago
Nice Read. But I think everything is already tailormade fro profiting the companies whether we like it or not. It's not just spyware and microchips etc. every device is recording and listening and many companies are creating psychological profiles based on our online behavior. The most obvious example is targeted ads. So I think its really optimistic, if not unrealistic, to think people are gonna stand in the way. We gave up our privacy and free-thinking long ago and traded it for devices so we can make money.
maerF0x0 7y ago
I have always mentored more junior folks to consider every key stroke on company property to be viewed in the most unfavorable light and to be subsequently "owned" by the company.
- a_e_k 7y ago
  Not just that: I think it's also wise to assume that a data breach may someday make one's e-mail and Slack messages public. Or they may get subpoenaed in a suit.
planetzero 7y ago
15+ years ago, I was working on my first development job out of college and I noticed that there was a strange process running on my work computer that couldn't be killed. I traced it to a specific port and host and used telnet to connect to it directly (I thought it was malware and got curious). Little did I know that my manager was watching our every move and when I connected to the host/port (sending no data), it crashed their viewers (the software was crap). I was brought in then next day to my manager's office and they told me they saw what I did and asked me to explain. I did and didn't get fired. My coworker got fired that day because the whole purpose was to watch his computer. He was spending the majority of his time on online poker sites and working on his own projects on company time. I also remember my manager casually bringing up topics that I talked about over IM with a friend over my lunch break..which was creepy (this was before I knew he was watching us and never let on the reasons he was bringing up these topics). We were forced to sign a contract the next day that stated that the company has a right to monitor our computers and we were to only be working on company-related work on company computers. I left that company a few months later. One reason being that I hated the idea of someone watching me 24/7. It was a great decision because they cut 25% of the workforce shortly after I left. Almost all of my ex-coworkers were let go or left within a year.
babycake 7y ago
Wow, I didn't know they had "sound sensors" at some sites like Walmart. Like the article mentioned, it can be used to stamp out workers organizing early on.

44 points by jrepinc 7y ago

Nice Read. But I think everything is already tailormade fro profiting the companies whether we like it or not. It's not just spyware and microchips etc. every device is recording and listening and many companies are creating psychological profiles based on our online behavior. The most obvious example is targeted ads. So I think its really optimistic, if not unrealistic, to think people are gonna stand in the way. We gave up our privacy and free-thinking long ago and traded it for devices so we can make money.

maerF0x0 7y ago

I have always mentored more junior folks to consider every key stroke on company property to be viewed in the most unfavorable light and to be subsequently "owned" by the company.

a_e_k 7y ago
Not just that: I think it's also wise to assume that a data breach may someday make one's e-mail and Slack messages public. Or they may get subpoenaed in a suit.

planetzero 7y ago

15+ years ago, I was working on my first development job out of college and I noticed that there was a strange process running on my work computer that couldn't be killed. I traced it to a specific port and host and used telnet to connect to it directly (I thought it was malware and got curious). Little did I know that my manager was watching our every move and when I connected to the host/port (sending no data), it crashed their viewers (the software was crap). I was brought in then next day to my manager's office and they told me they saw what I did and asked me to explain. I did and didn't get fired. My coworker got fired that day because the whole purpose was to watch his computer. He was spending the majority of his time on online poker sites and working on his own projects on company time. I also remember my manager casually bringing up topics that I talked about over IM with a friend over my lunch break..which was creepy (this was before I knew he was watching us and never let on the reasons he was bringing up these topics). We were forced to sign a contract the next day that stated that the company has a right to monitor our computers and we were to only be working on company-related work on company computers. I left that company a few months later. One reason being that I hated the idea of someone watching me 24/7. It was a great decision because they cut 25% of the workforce shortly after I left. Almost all of my ex-coworkers were let go or left within a year.

babycake 7y ago

Wow, I didn't know they had "sound sensors" at some sites like Walmart. Like the article mentioned, it can be used to stamp out workers organizing early on.