I have also been the web surfing police
And the email police. Its a dirty job, Tim, but someone has to do it. It really should fall more under the HR umbrella though, in my opinion.
I used Websense and thought it was very good as far as enforcing policies, but the administrator module was complicated to configure and the reports misleading unless you really customized them. I would still recommend it as an excellent product, but you need to spend time with it.
The company I worked for, a law firm, had a very detailed policy in place for the use of Internet, email, computers and other electronic devices. People had to read and sign that they received the policy and understood it.
What your boss did is really unethical because he did it stealthily. It sounds like your boss really wanted the CEO out, probably knew about his activities already and needed proof. You became an unwitting part of his sting operation. Did they have a policy in place at that company that would legally protect YOU as the web police?
Thanks for the Track4Win link. I tried to get Websense too, but its cost prohibitive right now where I work.
Web monitoring is always controversial, but the bottom line is that there is a limit to what you should do online at work.
AV
