Privacy practices when using office computer

I originally posted this article on my blog in Experts Columns.

Today I'll be discussing about "privacy" in using computer at your office or wherever you are working using a computer provided by your employer.

First thing first, bear in mind that it is not your computer. It's your employer's computer. They can do whatever they want to on that computer, or whatever it is that pleases them, or on what is good for the company.

First of all, as I have mentioned earlier it's not your computer so do not put anything about your personal life in it. It may not be good in the future if something bad happens between you and the company that you are working for because it can be used against you. Someone in your company can use it to blackmail you if they happen to get them.

Putting up some of your personal stuff in an office computer is a BIG NO.

As an I.T. I have seen a lot of computers being littered with personal stuffs and it's not pretty. You can put your company outing pictures there if you want to if it's okay with the company policy. And how am I seeing those things you may ask?

Once in a while computer broke up that's when I come in. And while I am looking to the reason why the computer broke up I always see those personal things since Windows these days have a thumbnail preview on a folder.

If you are using your personal email to communicate outside then do not let the browser save your password if it offered you to save your password for the first time.

If you accidentally saved your password then you have to look at the settings of your browser to erase it.

If your employer gave you a corporate e-mail to communicate inside and outside of the company do not use it for your personal purposes. Most companies these days do not prohibit you in logging-in your personal e-mail on their computer for your personal purposes.

If your company let's you use social networking sites during your break time then do not let your browser save your password because a skilled computer user can peek at your password in that computer.

If also your company let's you browse the internet during break time then it is best to clear your browsing history "every time" before you close your browser, because once again a skilled and cunning computer user can peek at your browsing history and they can use it against you.

DO NOT install any games on a computer owned by your employer. It's a big NO. Haha.

Imagine if your manager or your boss found out that the computer that you are using is filled with games. Believe me you it will not be a big deal the moment once they saw it, BUT, it will be a big deal about your performance.

Why I am saying that it is not a big deal at the first time they saw it? Because high ranking employees tends to make a joke out of it once they saw it, that's how sometimes an office environment works, but later on it will be remembered when performance evaluation comes.

Another good practice to get used to when you are using your employer's computer is to have a password so that you are the only one that can access your office works on that computer.

Having a password on your office computer does not make your personal stuffs secure on that computer.

Always lock your computer before you go into a break or go to some places on your office.

That's it for now guys. I will update this article as soon as I have something to add into it.

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