How do I stop my Boss monitoring my Internet/email usage?

Question

My company is having a Microsoft server system set up & one of the office staff has told me that when this is fully installed, my Boss will be able to check what sites I visit, internet usage & what emails I send. I'm not happy about this, but there's not much I can do about it, so I decided to come on here & ask if anyone knows of any software, or procedure that I can use, to stop this? I use the only Mac in the company, everyhting else is PC??
CHEERS

Answer 1

Hello,
It may not be what you want to hear. But, the computers you are using at work are property of your employer. And, the Internet connection you use there is paid for by your employer. And, the time you spend at work also belongs to your employer (they are purchasing your time from you).
So, you really cannot complain about them monitoring the activities performed on their computer, the traffic going over their network, and whether you are performing the task that you are paid to perform.
There really is no way for you to mask what you are doing with this type of arrangement.
Any software installed on your computer (actually their computer) will be detected. And, anything you send over their network will be archived. So, while you could use an anonymizer on the Internet, that would not prevent them from seeing the traffic to and from your system.
My wife's work computer even has a program on it that scans it every time she turns it on and looks for unauthorized software installations. Even her portable computer will report unauthorized software.
The problem, is that companies are liable for what you do on their equipment. If you install a pirated copy of your favorite program, then they are liable for having pirated software on their computer.
If you download a program from the Internet, and install it, it could create a security hole in their system for others to exploit.
If you like to go look at adult pictures on the web, then that stuff is on their systems. A local company here has actually had that happen several times on their system. They've found a couple of their male employee's to have had "kiddie" pictures on their computers, and to have been surfing those sites during work hours.
In those cases, the employers are obligated to inform the police and report what they found on their system. Without a monitoring system, all they'd be able to do is determine that someone did it. And, that would make the company fully liable for the illegal activity. But, with a monitoring system, they can determine which employee did it, and let that employee pay the consequences for his illegal activity.
You need to first understand that your employer is not sitting there specifically watching everything you are doing. They are just watching for certain things that will require their intervention and correction.
Much of this is automated with software. And, the admins are just notified when things trigger a rule violation. But, in some cases the employers will specifically watch an employee if it appears as though something illegal is happening or if they have reason to.
Either way, there isn't much you can do about it.
It's their legal right to protect their business, monitor their own equipment, and make sure that their Internet service is only being used for the purposes it is provided.
Remember that all that equipment is provided only as a "tool" to help you perform your job.
It is not a personal luxury for you to use as you like. It is a tool specifically provided to assist you in your job. Your employer does not have to allow you to use that tool for any other purpose.
And, technically, since they are purchasing your time, it is in their best interest to make sure that you are using that tool for work rather than play.
Sorry if that isn't what you wanted to hear. But, if you've seen the stuff I've seen on employer's computers, then you'd understand.