Communication Breakdown
Communications from the world of, er, communications. And other stuff.
Wednesday 28 February 2007, 9:17 AM
Stupid press release of the day
Here's what cheered me up this wet and blustery morning:
Hi David,
Have you ever thought about the nefarious side of Instant Messaging (IM), and what some employees are really using it for, beyond idle chit-chat with co-workers?
Active chit-chat with co-workers?
Imagine the implications if employees at a financial institution were sending clandestine IM correspondence to outside parties, tipping them off to sell their shares in a major company. It sounds a bit like the Da Vinci Code, I know, but it's real - and frighteningly easy to do.
I am proud to say I've neither read nor seen the Da Vinci Code, but I'm pretty damn sure it doesn't include nefarious IM conversations involving financial tip-offs...
Picture this: an employee types what appears to be an innocuous IM to an outsider, but highlights random letters in a different color. Put together, these characters spell out hidden messages that could leak proprietary company information or violate industry regulations.
Or they could meet in the pub. Or send a text. Or...
What's worse, many companies have yet to log their IM chats in their native file formats, meaning compliance managers cannot see the different fonts and colors to decode the text within.
Oh, let me guess what your product does...
If you're interested in exploring this angle further...
Let me stop you there. Really. I have nefarious work to do.
Hi David,
Have you ever thought about the nefarious side of Instant Messaging (IM), and what some employees are really using it for, beyond idle chit-chat with co-workers?
Active chit-chat with co-workers?
Imagine the implications if employees at a financial institution were sending clandestine IM correspondence to outside parties, tipping them off to sell their shares in a major company. It sounds a bit like the Da Vinci Code, I know, but it's real - and frighteningly easy to do.
I am proud to say I've neither read nor seen the Da Vinci Code, but I'm pretty damn sure it doesn't include nefarious IM conversations involving financial tip-offs...
Picture this: an employee types what appears to be an innocuous IM to an outsider, but highlights random letters in a different color. Put together, these characters spell out hidden messages that could leak proprietary company information or violate industry regulations.
Or they could meet in the pub. Or send a text. Or...
What's worse, many companies have yet to log their IM chats in their native file formats, meaning compliance managers cannot see the different fonts and colors to decode the text within.
Oh, let me guess what your product does...
If you're interested in exploring this angle further...
Let me stop you there. Really. I have nefarious work to do.
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