Don't Spy On Me!
Clint Lewis, CI Editor
Could it be that someone is watching me type every word of this article? Is the
FBI's Carnivore program (now renamed to DCS1000) eating away at my text streams? I've
read that almost half of larger companies actively monitor the digital behavior
of their employees. Is this a good thing?
I probably wouldn't last too long at a company that makes a big deal about my
online activities. As an independent contractor, I work hard at the tasks set
by my clients, but I need an occasional digital break off and on during the
day. I think most people do. I'm probably not the person the digital voyeurs
are looking to bust anyway. They are probably looking for web surfing slackers,
or those with bad attitudes expressed in email. All of this snooping gives me
the creeps.
Web bugs
Unfortunately, snooping has become a way of life. For instance, the Privacy
Foundation is now offering free software to detect web bugs, or clear GIFs
-- GIFs that don't show up on a web page and come from a url different from the
one where think you are. The same invisible GIF is spread around different
sites to help track customer habits, but could be used toward malicious ends,
such as grabbing IP addresses or installing files. If you want to scope out
this weirdness go to BugNosis.
Cookies and Microsoft
The web bug issue is similar to cookies in some ways, but with cookies you have
to wonder what goes through the mind of the browser makers. Try this experiment
with IE 5: Go into Tools | Internet Options | Security | Custom Level. In the
Cookies section, set the prompt for cookies that are stored on your computer
option. Close and restart your browser, then go to a site that delivers hard
cookies, say ColoradoSprings.com, a site that loves
cookies. When you get the message that prompts if you'll allow a cookie on your
computer, click the checkbox that says: in the future do not show this warning.
Great. One would think the message means you'd like to preserve your no-cookie
setting and not be bothered by the prompt each time you encounter a cookie.
However, if you restart your browser and go check the settings you'll see that
now all hard cookies are allowed without prompts. I like the IE browser,
but what kind of customer attitude is that? Why the deception?
Is it worth it?
Between the under-the-cover web tricks, the flood of email newsletters, and the
phone solicitations resulting from filled out web forms, I'm beginning to Pine
(pretty bad pun for early internet users) for the days of text-only command
prompt email readers. But I guess if we don't keep moving forward we miss pages
like: Powers of 10 a page which kind of changed my
life the first time I saw it.