Servers at work

[MindTrix]

Hey guys, i was sitting here wondering about this and thought of you guys for a solution so heres the question

At my work place we have depots all over the U.K and they are all linked by our server.

Now ive seen in the past when we've had problems with something to do with the computer, or a program not working right, we have phoned I.T support and they take over the computer, and we can see the mouse moving and them basically using the computer.

Now, what can they and cant they do? Can they see my screen right now as im writting this? Can they suddenly take control of it and start deleting what i write?

We have websites blocked and banned here, and some are open, but frequently they ban more and more, i've been bypassing this by using free proxy sites, but now they seem banned too. So it made me wonder if they could see i was using it.

Thanks for any info you can give me

[Reeve of Shinra]

At my office, you are given a prompt which asks if you want to give the IT guy access to / control of your PC. If they have access then they are basically seeing what you are seeing on your screen including webpages.

Irregardless of that, if you job wanted to, they can store and read your instant messages (like aim), have aim and email convos flagged for key words like s-x or resume. They can also see what sites you are visiting from thier end. Most business dont want to go through the work but some places are more stringent about that than others.

[MindTrix]

Hmmm interesting, we do not get no prompt about letting IT see the computer etc. I just believe its there as standard.

It just makes me wonder thats all, because i notice if i find a website thats not blocked, after a while it ends up getting blocked.

[Joe Gronlund]

For security reasons, remote assistance should only be enabled temporarily.

The sites your visiting that where not blocked at the time, which are now blocked, where very likely noticed as visited sites in the servers log files. Or the site(s) where noticed in a proxy, and or firewall log file..

[MindTrix]

Ok so does this mean though that people up in the IT department can see everything on my screen right now? and watch everything i do?

[Wayne Luke]

We have websites blocked and banned here, and some are open, but frequently they ban more and more, i've been bypassing this by using free proxy sites, but now they seem banned too. So it made me wonder if they could see i was using it.

They can set the network up so that all of your information is stored on a network drive this allows you to log in from any workstation and do your work. This means they can easily scan history and cached internet files as well.

They can also run programs on the network that will tell them all the sites each employee uses. Chances are though, your machine goes through a firewall and they simply have to look at the firewall's logs to see if people are visiting inappropriate sites.

[SSSlippy]

Ive noticed at my job they use a standard web filter/firewall program and when a website gets blocked people I know also have the same places get blocked at their job due to the companies who use these programs just add that site to the list.

Honestly most companies use these dumb web filters. The easiest thing is to block all internet then just allow certain websites.

[dynamite]

Ok so does this mean though that people up in the IT department can see everything on my screen right now? and watch everything i do?

Yes they can. I used to work in an IT department and we had it where we could take over a computer without having to request permission. We could long on to someone elses computer and watch what they were doing without them even knowing.
I remember we were working one night and had to log on to a particular computer to work on. Well, the user of that computer was on it playing Solitare. We called him up and asked him what was he doing using the work computer to play games and he denied it. So we told him that we knew he was playing games on the computer, and again he denied it. So his boss got on the phone with him, took control of the cursor and move a card which solved the game and told him "See... you should have moved that card!" The guy actually had a heart attack and had to be transported to the hospital by an ambulance!
And yes, they can be set up to log all websites you visit, log every keystroke you make, etc. Your best bet is to not do what you're not supposed to do because they can and will find out!

[Joe Gronlund]

So his boss got on the phone with him, took control of the cursor and move a card which solved the game and told him "See... you should have moved that card!" The guy actually had a heart attack and had to be transported to the hospital by an ambulance!

I am a little confused as to why you would find that the least bit funny?

Anyways, there are many other secure methods of logging this type of activity, without forcing open remote assist ports..
Remote assistance, and remote access by an admin should always be used as a last resort...

Even when run over top of Terminal Services, it is not the most secure method to log such activity..

[dynamite]

I am a little confused as to why you would find that the least bit funny?

Anyways, there are many other secure methods of logging this type of activity, without forcing open remote assist ports..
Remote assistance, and remote access by an admin should always be used as a last resort...

Even when run over top of Terminal Services, it is not the most secure method to log such activity..

The guy having a heart attack wasn't necessarily funny, but the entire situation of the guy lying and then getting caught in the end is.

We used VNC for remote access of computer since our IT department covered an entire state, it allowed us to work on computers rather than having to drive several hours to do the same thing.

[Dean C]

Is it a co-incidence that you have the same avatar as an old member called Lesane? I don't know...

[dynamite]

Is it a co-incidence that you have the same avatar as an old member called Lesane? I don't know...

Who me? If so, I have had it ever since I created my profile on here.