This is another perennial problem with computer networks. Excessive private use of computers costs Irish organisations thousands every year. The only practical way of proving it, is through computer forensics.
The problem
Our client, a large professional services firm, approached us with a HR issue. One of their senior executives had not been performing well in their role. They had also noticed what appeared to be excessive use of the internet associated with this individual. Was the executive engaged in market research, as he claimed, or was he simply wasting his time?
The solution
We made a forensic copy of the individual’s computer. We also forensically retrieved the internet browsing logs from the client’s internet “proxy” server. Our analysis showed extensive access to sporting, gaming and other entertainment sites. It also showed repeated access to gambling sites in breach of our client’s strict ban on such activity.
Our client advised us that after being presented with our evidence, the individual concerned had been successfully “persuaded to seek a position elsewhere”.