Ten Things Your IT Department Won't Tell You

The Wall Street Journal ^ | July 30, 2007 | VAUHINI VARA

[redfish53]

Ten Things Your IT Department Won't Tell You By VAUHINI VARA July 30, 2007; Page R1

Admit it: For many of us, our work computer is a home away from home.

It seems only fair, since our home computer is typically an office away from the office. So in between typing up reports and poring over spreadsheets, we use our office PCs to keep up with our lives. We do birthday shopping, check out funny clips on YouTube and catch up with friends by email or instant message.

And often it's just easier to accomplish certain tasks using consumer technology than using the sometimes clunky office technology our company gives us -- compare Gmail with a corporate email account.

Security expert Mark Lobel of PricewaterhouseCoopers describes the most common things employees do on the internet to jeopardize company security. There's only one problem with what we're doing: Our employers sometimes don't like it. Partly, they want us to work while we're at work. And partly, they're afraid that what we're doing compromises the company's computer network -- putting the company at risk in a host of ways. So they've asked their information-technology departments to block us from bringing our home to work.

End of story? Not so fast. To find out whether it's possible to get around the IT departments, we asked Web experts for some advice. Specifically, we asked them to find the top 10 secrets our IT departments don't want us to know. How to surf to blocked sites without leaving any traces, for instance, or carry on instant-message chats without having to download software....

[Gorzaloon]

.....that needs to end.....

.....by one means or another.....

Agree, and I am heartbrokenastonished "It" Hasn't happened yet.

Though there WAS a heartwarming start when that infamous Russian spammer was found bludgeoned to death in his office last year.

Where are the copycats when you NEED them?

Seriously, there is a father and son team in CA that has caused untold damage, and they get off with consent orders. They should be gutted and impaled in front of their families, in a Perfect World™.

[redfish53]

LOL!!

[AppyPappy]

Don’t worry about snoops. Your greatest threat is contracting a virus that scans your computer for information and sends it out, not a random snooper. The chances of someone sniffing your line is almost nil. And if they really want to do it, you can’t stop them.

[cyberaxe]

and they get off with consent orders. They should be gutted and impaled

.....agreed.....

.....those kinds are only slightly above.....

.....sexual predators in my pond.....

[dan1123]

Out of all of these. Yours was the one that made me actually laugh so the guy in the next cube heard.

[quikdrw]

My servers at home are old and well past their prime. But they do work as my sandbox. I would like to have the boss spring for a big beefy one that I could load virtual server and only need one box. That ain’t going to happen.

[4yearlurker]

I’m kinda old. What does IT stand for. I never worked in an office environment.

[cyberaxe]

.....it can be really hard not to laugh.....

.....when some people do these things and.....

.....truly expect you to help them.....

[Fawn]

You’re right.....

[cyberaxe]

What does IT stand for.

.....Immediate Torture.....

.....Intense Trauma.....

.....Irrevocable Tension.....

.....or Information Technology.....

[Syntyr]

Yep.

I actually had a user one time stop by my office and tell me that the coffee maker had stopped working and he actually had a look on his face like he expected me to fix it...

[4yearlurker]

Okay thanks,I’ll go with the last one. I’m picturing Jimmy Fallon as “Nick Burns The Company Computer Guy.” If your ever in the area I’ll show you how to bust down a front quarter of beef with a 12 inch knife and a hand saw. (Meat cutter by trade.)

[4yearlurker]

OOOps. your=you’re

[quikdrw]

I hate phone system questions. I know next to nothing about phone systems, but that doesn’t stop anyone.

PDA’s have been the bane of my existence, too.

[MarkL]

Thanks. Ok I'll leave those two alone then. I knew what the tireremote process uses and will continue to delete that even though I have it turned off.... Thanks for the Autoruns page.....I'll see if i can download it and run it. I really have nothing to hide...I just want to know how I'm being watched.

The best thing about it (and MSCONFIG) is that it allows you to experiment and see how things work when you boot your system without certain processes automatically running, so you don't have to kill them. This is especially useful when you find that you're having startup problems that you suspect is caused by "dueling software."

Mark

[Billthedrill]

IT knows all the porn sites you’ve been cruising.

Well, of course. Do you think I'm gonna waste my time finding those sites by myself? Efficiency, my FRiend. Efficiency.

[Dr.Zoidberg]

I guess I like more permanent solutions.

Virus writers deserve death. But if that’s off the table, then I will opt for maiming. Both hands at the elbow would be acceptable.

[rabidralph]

LOL! Best. Office movie. Ever!

[Neidermeyer]

Yes but do you have a MVS “POO” manual?

[KayEyeDoubleDee]

Is this a joke? Why don’t they run a how-to-cheat-on-your-exams primer.