Craig Young, in an article from ITWeb, wrote that companies have an uphill battle when it comes to controlling equipment abuse, including telephones, facsimile machines, cellular phones, and company petrol.

“Companies seem to err on the side of caution, saying that it is a sensitive subject and touching on it could cause disruption within the company.  However, if left unchecked, these abuses could lead to serious costs for companies and, at the end of the day, could result in job losses anyway due to dwindling profits,” said Young.

Karen Geldenhuys, MD of ICT-focused recruitment company Abacus Recruitment, said the abuse of equipment is difficult to control.  “When it comes to Internet usage, for instance, a growing number of companies are keeping track of which Web sites employees are visiting.  This can be embarrassing for employees, but, due to the substantial number of work hours lost through employees trawling the Internet, this approach is becoming more acceptable.”

She went on to say that “Abuse of computer equipment can chop 10% or more off a company’s revenue.”

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In an article from Internet Privacy Safe, the author writes that if you think your computer is safe from the prying eyes of your company or boss, think again.  Nearly 80 percent of major U.S. companies monitor their employees’ Internet, e-mail, and phone usage.  This according to the findings of the New York City-based American Management Association’s (AMA’s) annual workplace monitoring and surveillance survey.

“Privacy in the workplace is largely illusory,” says Ellen Bayer, the AMA’s human resources practice leader.  Active monitoring has risen considerably in recent years, up from 35 percent in 1997 to 78 percent today.

In past years the increase was related to an increase in the percentage of employees that were gaining access to email and the Internet.  However, this year the average percentage of workers with an office email and Internet connection remained the same, but monitoring of those activities went up almost 10 percent.

“It’s not just a matter of corporate curiosity, but very real worries about productivity and liability that push these policies,” says Eric Rolfe Greenberg, director of management studies for the AMA.

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