We tend to get comfortable with our work computers. It’s our personal environment that we spend at least 40 hours per week interacting with.
Sometimes we may have to leave it on the weekends, but if working remotely, it may be there at our house all the time. It’s easy for the line between personal and work computing to get blurred.
But the fact remains that a company-owned computer is just that. Owned by the company. All too often employees will treat a work device as a personal computer the longer they have it.
This is a bad idea for both parties. On the company side, the PC is put more at risk of a breach if used for non-work-related activities, web browsing, and personal file storage. There’s also the fact that the company bought the device for the specific purpose of business use.
But on the employee side, there is also some risk with using a company computer for personal computer activities, not the least of which is getting found out and losing the computer and the job along with it.
If more employees realized how personal use of a work computer could put their data at risk, it might be easier for them to keep those two worlds separated.
If you’ve ever saved a personal file or done a little online shopping while on your work device, you’ll want to read this list below to see why this is a bad idea. Here are several things you should never do when on your company-issued computer.
Save Passwords
If you visit any personal sites (like your online banking) while on your work device, it might not seem like such a big deal to save your password in the browser. After all, you’re now downloading anything or going on a “bad” website.
But you can lose access to a company-owned device at any time without warning. For example, a company may decide to upgrade all employee computers, or they may lay employees off without warning and take back the PC.
If you lose access to that computer and your passwords are still stored in the browser (that you are still signed into), anyone that ends up with that PC could have the keys to get into multiple accounts that you own.
Store Personal Files
It’s also a bad idea to store personal files on a work PC. For one, the hard drive space is expected to be used for business documents. It could end up getting filled up faster than it should if you’re storing large personal files.
Another issue is that many companies back up their employees’ PCs, as they should for business continuity. So, all your personal files could end up being saved in the corporate cloud backup system, which could end up getting you in trouble later or could cause some embarrassment, depending on what you saved.
90% of companies back up their business data.
Search for a New Job
Searching for a new job on your work computer is really bad employee etiquette and something that could easily get you fired.
It’s not unusual for companies to monitor website traffic to keep an eye on bandwidth allocation and watch for any security threats. If you’re doing a job search while on the company network, it could easily be exposed.
Online Shopping
Online shopping seems like an innocent enough task if you’re doing it on your own time, during lunch or after hours. But this is another thing that can put your personal data at risk.
Many people will store their credit card details in their web browser. If anyone else accesses your work computer, this means they could gain access to your credit card information and go on a shopping spree of their own. It’s best to keep online shopping relegated to your personal devices only.
Visit Sketchy Websites
Where you like to go online when on your own devices is your own business, but if you’re on a company-owned device, then it becomes the business of the organization you work for as well.
Stay off any sketchy websites while on your work device. These can put not only your job but the company’s network security at risk. Often these types of sites will have a high degree of malware connected to them.
A good rule of thumb to go by is that if you wouldn’t visit a site with your boss looking over your shoulder, then you shouldn’t visit that site on your work device.
Need Help With Endpoint Management & Protection?
It’s become more complicated for companies to manage their endpoints because they can be in the homes of remote teams. Rocky Knoll Technologies can help your Charlotte area business with effective endpoint management solutions.
Contact us today to schedule a free consultation. Call 704.594.7292 or reach us online.
