Two weeks ago we were announcing that a new version of our Cyclope Employee Surveillance Solution is in “laboratories” for important changes. The developers have done their job and the new version of our employee monitoring solution is ready to be released.
The most important change for Cyclope Employee Surveillance Solution version 5.5 is that fact that it has been developed on a new technology, .NET framework 2.0. Also, due to many requests we received, a new functionality has been added, the possibility to deliver by e-mail the Overview report and Alerts.
Other important features were related to applications’ features:
- - A new top report has been added – Top productive – which shows the most productive employees from a certain group or from the entire company
- - New types of documents and new chat clients have been included for monitoring
- - Internet activity filters – gives possibility to choose to see the Internet activity on all browsers or on specific browsers
- - Document monitoring filters – gives possibility to see all the documents or only certain type of documents
If you would like to see what is new and improved in our Employee Monitoring Software then we courage you to download and test the application. If you have any enquiries about the application of if you just want to send us your feedback, you can contact us at sales@cyclope-series.com or at support@cyclope-series.com .
Workplace policy is a formal policy created by the management / business owners in order to set clear restrictions, protecting both employees and employers. Workplace policy covers more topics like: rate of pay, discrimination, abuse within workplace, employee rights etc. To avoid misunderstandings and malpractice within the company it is very important to have a clear and complete policy. On the other hand, employees should read these policies carefully because sometimes these policies can be sneaky and if there is something that looks suspicious, they should ask for more details.
Now, in regard to employee monitoring, this issue should definitely have a complete section into the workplace policy. If a business owner omits to include in the workplace policy that within his company employee monitoring techniques are applied, then the employee rights are violated and the company could get in serious problems with the law. Continue reading ‘Avoid employee rights violation with workplace policy’
Our top business solution, Cyclope Employee Surveillance, is in “laboratories” for important changes. Developers are now performing the final tests in order to release the newest version at the end of next week.
Cyclope Employee Surveillance Solution, version 5.5 has been created using a new technology, .NET framework 2.0. Beside the technical improvements our team worked to improve the interface and to add new features. I will mention some of the changes and a detailed description I will provide you when the new version will go live:
- - Quick Info page is now providing screenshots summary with the most important reports available.
- - New types of documents have been included for monitoring: Oracle Reports Server, Oracle Forms Runform, Oracle Discoverer, Qlik, Charisma, Remote Desktop Connection, VNC, Windev, AutoCAD
- - New chat clients have been included for monitoring: Pidgin, QIP, Miranda
This new version will be of tremendous value to business professionals and small business. We will provide you more details as soon as the new version will go live. Until then, keep an eye on our blog and see what other events are upcoming.
If some years ago a third of US employers were using employee monitoring software, you can imagine that these days, considering the financial crisis, an increasing number of employers are using employee monitoring software to reduce malpractice within their companies but also to increase productivity.
But implementing this type of technology needs more than just an IT expert, because there are other things to consider like legal issues. The first think that you should do is to consult with a layer and ask for advice regarding the law within your country. These days there are only few countries that does not allow employee monitoring. As a general view, what each employer must do is to:
- 1. Write an agreement and ask the employees to sign it
- 2. Communicate your intention clearly to all your employees
- 3. Specify the inappropriate uses
- 4. Set out privacy rules
- 5. Do not monitor the content but the application usage
Continue reading ‘When employee monitoring is illegal?’
At this moment our developers are working hard to a new release of Cyclope Employee Monitoring Software.
The new version will provide managers more functionalities in order to efficiently measure employees’ productivity within a company. The new embedded features regard reports related to the top applications used, top websites visited, top active users, top idle users but also the top online users.
The reports and the information can be analyzed on the entire company, on departments and even on each employee in part.
We will provide you more details regarding the new features of the employee monitoring software at the end of this month, when the new release will be public.
When it comes to employers’ and employees’ rights in the office, both are on fair levels. A boss cannot harass his employees, and the same applies vice-versa. They are both allowed to maintain some sort of personal privacy, as well. However, once an employee enters the digital world in their computer, does this change? It most certainly does.
An employee is at a slight disadvantage when using their workplace’s computer. While visual and listening devices placed amongst an employee’s workplace must be installed according to laws and regulations, anything that goes down within a computer at the office is fair game to an employer. There are virtually no laws regulating the way an employer 
can monitor their employees’ computer activity.
In a national survey, nearly 80 percent of employers admitted that they use some sort of tactics to monitor their employees use on the computer. There are some states where legislation asks an employer inform his employees that he can access what has been happening on an employee’s computer, though.
Continue reading ‘Privacy vs. Monitoring: Employers’ and Employees’ Rights’
With billions of dollars being lost every year due to this, work productivity in the office and work place is not a minor issue. Instead of undertaking word processing, research, and business tasks with their work computer, employees are using the computer for other, more personal uses. These “tasks” can range from internet instant messaging, sending personal emails, playing 
internet games, browsing inappropriate material, and many other non-work related tasks. So how does an employer get their employees off their computer and back on work?
Offering incentives for achieving work goals ahead of schedule is a simple way to provide a means of getting your employees on track. This can range to a small paycheck bonus, an office party, or if it will provide the company with millions of dollars, you can even arrange a small getaway vacation for your employees. However, all of this means money out of your businesses pocket, and that can add up over many incentive giveaways.
Setting up surveillance cameras is a good way to let your employees know you will always have your eye on them. However, with hardware based security and surveillance systems, you run into many problems. They are not cheap by any means, and can take days or weeks to install depending on their complexity. They can only see what is happening on the other side of the lens, and their resolution and capture speed isn’t high enough to actually view what is happening on an employee’s computer. You may also run into problems with the law.
Continue reading ‘Increasing Staff Productivity’
When examining the options you have to observe the activities of your employees of your organization in the workplace, you are left with two reasonable options. You could settle by installi
ng a hardware based system, setting up cameras to watch your employees. An alternate route would be to install software on your server and employees work computers to view exactly what they are using their workstation for. There are benefits and disadvantages to both types of surveillance choices.
Using hardware, like cameras, set up around your employees’ workspaces, is a sign to all employees that they are being watch. It is an effective way to remind them that any physical actions they take can be monitored, as well as increase productivity.
However, this can create a stressful atmosphere (nobody likes to be fully monitored). Also, only so much can be picked up by video recording systems. Things out of range, or outside the cameras viewing angle will be left unknown to those needing to view them. Anything on a computer screen will not be legible, and you will not be able to identify just exactly what they are using their computer workstation for. On top of this, hardware systems can be pricey. On top of the cameras, you will need to set a budget aside for a recording system, wires and extra electricity consumption, and installation. 
A software system is beneficial as it allows you to see directly what your employees are doing on your server and computers. Software surveillance allows you to know what programs where opened, who emailed who, and what files were sent where. It is an excellent way to catch trade secrets of your business getting into others hands.
Another benefit is that software systems aren’t fully regulated by the government. Recording your employees with video can get you into deep legal fixes if something is installed improperly, but software systems can be installed without letting your employees know. A software-based security system can’t see the other tasks being performed outside of the computer, so that is where a video-recording system can come in handy.
Continue reading ‘Digital Surveillance – Hardware or Software’
Sometimes you may just need to start monitoring your employees’ computer and Internet activity in your office. While there are certainly privacy issues you will need to work out amongst yourself and those working for you it can be a very smart choice that can save you money in the long run if used for the right reasons.
What are some of the top reasons you may want to implement computer monitoring software?
Productivity
A company can be made up of hundreds, even thousands of employees, all connecting with your computers and Internet connections. A company’s value, through many people’s eyes
, is a reflection of how productive they are. While a computer and the Internet can help speed up productivity, it also can affect it negatively. There are many distractions on the internet – social networking, instant messaging, media and news, amongst others – that can slow your employee’s work to a standstill. If you feel this might be affecting your employees, you may want to install computer monitoring software and let your employees know that you are doing so. This may have enough of an impact to get them off the internet and back to work on its own. Continue reading ‘Top reasons to monitor your employees’ computer activity’
It is almost necessary for anyone managing a business or office that you know your employees are doing their job. It is especially important to know what they are using your company’s equipment and computers for in the work place and they are not playing nor do other inefficient, non-work related tasks. While there is plenty of software available on the market to track what is happening on each of the computers available on your network, there is one question that needs an answer before you install it. Is it legal?
The question on whether or not you are allowed to “spy” on your employees in the office comes down to the legality of it. In some cases it is legal, and in other cases, using monitoring software to view what your employees are doing on the job can be illegal. In America, some states say this is perfectly ok. However, many actually may take legal action against employers viewing its employee’s activities. Local county or city rules may even come into play.
Certainly, anything happening inside the office can, and should be monitored. This should be done to track reliability, use of time, and efficiency of your employees, if not for anything else. If your workers in the office are using your computers, your equipments, your company’s software and servers, then it is legal to know every little exchange of information that happens within the office walls.
Say your office uses an office-wide IM service. Most of these IM services already have a built in monitoring system for your server that will catch any message going between the computers in your office. Reading these would be legal. However, if an employee logs on to MSN or AIM, you may have another problem. Because the messages are being sent outside of your office, you could be infringing on employee privacy laws if you monitor and review these messages. Continue reading ‘Is monitoring your employee legal?’
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