Sneak On! The Trojan USB Horse Technoia
November 4th, 2005 by Adam Cuothe
Lorraine Cosgrove Ware of CIO Magazine points out some interesting tidbits from the zine’s recent survey.
…technologies are becoming available that end users can use without the IT department’s knowledge, such as USB drives, inexpensive Web services and camera-equipped cell phones. These technologies can expose your organization to intentional or unintentional loss (i.e., theft or misplacement) of proprietary enterprise information.
Aside from the fact that the article doesn’t mention neural ticker-tape pods, she pretty much covers the important gadgets. I’ll say I’m a bit peeved that this is another article tossing around the phrase “intellectual property” when nobody has really ever proven that such a concept even makes sense much less can really exist. It’s as though the existence of something called “intellectual property” is now a given. Bull. It just adds up to more paranoia for the CIO to pressure the already over-burdened IT department.
On to my real point… An employee does not need a camera-equipped cell phone to capture and communicate sensitive internal company information, and you can bet there are reams of competitive intelligence-providing firms that have already successfully figured this out. I propose a better way to ensure your corporate intelligentsia stays put is to make your workplace a good one, filled with employees that feel comfortable in their employer’s trust and respect for their work. Foment a pleasant workplace in which employees don’t feel used, constantly scared for their jobs, or taken advantage of, and the standard employee will have little desire to betray you. I’m not saying don’t be careful to protect against viruses and trojans, etc. I’m saying enough with the ridiculous paranoia, especially every time a new gadget (digital or physical) worms its way into your fellows’ hearts or lustspots.
(P.S. I think I’ll make a new category so that I can start listing articles or press releases or whatnot that refer to “intellectual property” as a real given, without offering any justification for its use or existence.)
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