Blocking Bebo, Myspace, etc

H

hjrdee

Registered User
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Any quick way at work to block the above websites and similar ones. Having an issue at work where people seems to be checking them regularly. Don't want to make a big issue of it, so just wanna take the temptation away by blocking the access.

All answers appreciated
 
In my opinion doing something surreptitiously to block these sites may cause a bigger deal than just being up front and introducing an acceptable usage policy that deals with the issue. There are a few existing threads covering different options for blocking sites although I think that most may be desktop based and you may need a server/proxy based solution to cover multiple PCs on a single LAN.
 
you could block the ip address by rewriting the hosts file

or you could block the websites at your firewall.

But nothing is foolproof. How computer smart are your staff ?

They could for example surf to http://www.anonymouse.org and go to bebo from there !
 
Get a tippingpoint device if you really want to lock it down well - although they are not cheap.
 
Hi Hjrdee

You need to be careful how you approach this. Under the EU and Irish legislation people need to be made aware that the company is monitoring their personal activity using email and the Internet. The first step you need to consider is developing and getting everyone in the company to sign an acceptable usage policy within which they are made aware of what they can and cannot do with company equipment. This is to protect both the company from misuse and abuse of these systems by employees and also to make employees aware of their responsiblities.

There are number of threads on this topic already, see http://www.askaboutmoney.com/showthread.php?t=996&highlight=human+rights+directive and http://www.askaboutmoney.com/showthread.php?t=20947&highlight=human+rights+directive.

Also look at the following links for more information;
http://www.enterprise-ireland.com/ebusinesssite/guides/internal_security/internal_security_index.asp and information from the Data Protection Commisioner at;
[broken link removed]

C
 
Capaill said:
Under the EU and Irish legislation people need to be made aware that the company is monitoring their personal activity using email and the Internet.
C
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Hi Capaill,

Just to clarify, the company is not actually monitoring there personal activity. More a case of webpages being quickly shutdown when some approaches them. The bebo page is pretty distinct so thats how I know that was being viewed. Don't actually want to monitor there activity as that would be time consuming, more just want to ensure certain websites cant be viewed. If the employee tries to access a webpage and it doesn't work, then problem solved for the company point of view.
 
hrjdee

I appreciate that you are not actually looking to monitor their activity per se, but by blocking the sites you are in effect monitoring their activity. For example if you were not monitoring their activity then how do you know what sites to block?

The whole area of blocking/monitoring/controlling Internet access is fraught with legal landmines. Best approach is to draw up an acceptable usage policy that all users can sign up to. This is to protect both the company from employee's activities when online and also to protect the employees from accessing undesirable or unwanted sites.

I recommend that you get senior management buy-in for this and draw it up in conjunction with HR.

To automatically block sites there are numerous tools available such as Surf-Control, Websense, Sonic wall etc. or you could manually block the sites at your company's firewall (this is a very resource heavy task though)

C
 
This is not true...blocking particular websites does not impinge on anyone's rights. When I was in UCD hotmail was inaccessible for example. This isn't monitoring internet access, it's making best use of computers you control.
I find the idea of an employee giving their employer grief because bebo is blocked ridiculous.
 
I know of a company where they have the internet and are only allowed on the net during there lunch hour, its turned on for them to use.

I see where your coming from about the bebo, its grown so big. I know lots of my friends use it at work when they shouldnt be!
 
KalEl said:
This is not true...blocking particular websites does not impinge on anyone's rights. When I was in UCD hotmail was inaccessible for example. This isn't monitoring internet access, it's making best use of computers you control.
I find the idea of an employee giving their employer grief because bebo is blocked ridiculous.
Click to expand...

KalEl can you please point out why the information I gave is "not true". I gave references from both the Data Protection Commissioner and Enterprise IReland which seems to contradict your statement.

In order to block access to a site you need to monitor access to that site in order to block it. When you were in UCD did you not sign an acceptable usage policy before being allowed to access their IT resources?

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Capaill said:
KalEl can you please point out why the information I gave is "not true". I gave references from both the Data Protection Commissioner and Enterprise IReland which seems to contradict your statement.

In order to block access to a site you need to monitor access to that site in order to block it. When you were in UCD did you not sign an acceptable usage policy before being allowed to access their IT resources?

C
Click to expand...

No I did not. I asked a few of my friends about this over the weekend and some of the companies they work for do not allow access to hotmail.
If what you say is true I think it's outrageous but I very much doubt blocking certain websites impinges on anyone's rights.
 
Thanks for all the replies.

Have now noticed that one of the employees has said something not pleasant on their bebo page about a fellow employee. The message was written during the day while both were at work.

Does speaking to the guilty person impinge on the company since the bebo pages are free to access at any stage by anybody, so couldnt really be accused of spying. Also concerned in case the other poor employee stumbles upon it.

Thanks
 
The person in question could just say that somebody else posted the comments. I suspect that you should get professional advice on how to deal with this general situation.
 
I would draw it to his attention and ask him to remove it. Whether he posted it or not , he still can remove it.
 
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