E-mail/Computer

HRManager

Each of our employees have our space on the server. We store things there that get backed up each night. There is one new employee who is accessing personal docs from another persons "space" Is there anything we can do about this. Of cours, we have no policies in effect.

Margaret Morford

If he/she is breaking into other people's files, I would minimally give the employee a final written warning once you ask why he/she is doing this. You may find the employee has the other individual's permission. You may want to get some legal advice about whether this could be a fireable offense. Then put in a policy about computer files, e-mail usage and internet usuage. I have sample language that I would be glad to provide to you. E-mail me if you would like it.

Margaret Morford
theHRedge
615-371-8200
[email]mmorford@mleesmith.com[/email]
[url]http://www.thehredge.net[/url]

dhnyct

I'm not a computer guru, but can't you create password protection and assigned access rights?

System

I'm no guru either, but there are lots of ways to do this. The best would be limiting the user's access, which might require a guru to do. Also, for problem employees, there are ways of tracking everything they do on their computer.

James Sokolowski
Senior Editor
M. Lee Smith Publishers

HRManager

Do we have to tell everyone first that we will be tracking this?

Gillian

If you are in California, you had better. There are significant privacy issues that must be considered.

Mikki H

Being a relatively small company (12 PCs) it isn't too hard to maintain the passwords and permissions that restrict people from certain areas on the network. If the network server doesn't recognize your "sign-on" name and password, you will not get into the network. You can still work locally off some of our PCs, however as we upgrade, we will change that to protect the individual PC's hard drives. My computer, for example, has the new windows 2000 professional and unless you are signing in as me or the administrator (who is actually me too) you can't sign on to my computer. This protects my C: drive. The people who need to share files on the network are only given permission to those directories that they need. We also require that screensavers are active and password protected so that when you step away from your desk and still stay logged in, after 5 minutes, your screensaver will kick on and can not be bypassed without having your password. These are a few of the simple things that we have instituted on our small network just by using the Windows options and not any fancy security program.

HRManager

We haven't had the need to be that formal until now. We have a few new people who keep trying to stir things up.

Theresa Gegen TX

It's always good to have email and computer policies. What do you do if you find out an employee is going to porno websites using the work computer, but he claims he is only doing during his break time? If you have a good policy, this is a termination offense.

Also, you (as the employer) need to have a policy that gives you the right to access everything on your company's computers. This policy needs to be given to (and signed by) each employee. For example, what if you think an employee might be emailing confidential company documents to a competitor (this has been known to happen). Does your company have the right to check into that private area to see if that has been done?

Every pass word on the computer should be turned into the company. I've had a case where an employee left the company and never turned in the password, then said he forgot. The company needed the data, so that had to hire an expensive computer guru to get the data out.

Good Luck!

WOCO Frank

For the short term, you can minimize your current problem by showing employees how to assign password protection to individual files or folders. That way, even though the data is on a public server, only someone with the password can open, move or copy the files.

cedupree

Presuming these aren't stand alones, your server should have a location where you can even restrict the time the computer is available, along with passwords. That way after certain hours that computer(s) is locked. However, you are right about needing a policy. I have simple but thorough one, if you wish to have it.

HRManager

I would like a copy of your policy please. You can email me at [email]rheiller@inhousegroup.com[/email]. Thanks