Suggestions needed: Internet Blocking Software for small business

AggieMike88

AggieMike88

Touchdown! Greaser!
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The original "I don't know it all" of aviation.
As much as you'd like to trust that your employees are not doing something with or on the internet and web sites that is against company policy, I unfortunately have discovered a few of mine visiting sites that are inappropriate. Even after progressive disciplinary action, it continues.

Does anyone have any recommendations for a business version of what "Net Nanny" is?

I would like something
(-) affordable (I don't mind "pay for" if the price is reasonable and the features worth the money),
(-) easy to establish, deploy, and manage
(-) permits remote management (I don't have to be at the target workstation to make a change)
(-) locks out users at a workstation level
(-) permits a "white list" of permitted sites
(-) low CPU/Memory overhead
(-) company has been around for a good while and has a good service reputation.

Any and all suggestions are appreciated.
 
Take a look at Untangle. It's open-source based on some flavor of Linux. Requires a dedicated computer between your network and the gateway. Can act as a second-level firewall on inbound.

I used it in a small business network (10 workstations) and it was pretty effective. Among other things, I shut down the bandwidth-hogging video sites (and advertising sites that ran video, those were the worst). It's not Sonicwall, but doesn't come with a Sonicwall price, either.
 
AggieMike88 said:
As much as you'd like to trust that your employees are not doing something with or on the internet and web sites that is against company policy, I unfortunately have discovered a few of mine visiting sites that are inappropriate. Even after progressive disciplinary action, it continues.

Does anyone have any recommendations for a business version of what "Net Nanny" is?

I would like something
(-) affordable (I don't mind "pay for" if the price is reasonable and the features worth the money),
(-) easy to establish, deploy, and manage
(-) permits remote management (I don't have to be at the target workstation to make a change)
(-) locks out users at a workstation level
(-) permits a "white list" of permitted sites
(-) low CPU/Memory overhead
(-) company has been around for a good while and has a good service reputation.

Any and all suggestions are appreciated.
Click to expand...

While it's not a suggestion of a software fix for your problem, I would suggest you weigh the value of these employees to your company and decide if the time they spend accessing sites is worth it to your bottom line. If they still make you more money then they cost you then let them do what they want otherwise show them the door. I work for a very large company that has implemented web blocking and it's never worked as well as it should. Trying to block sites is a losing game and it actually costs the company productivity because of false positive blocks. I can't tell you the number of times I've been blocked from legitimate sites like vendors we do business with. Bottom line is if you can't trust your employees to follow the rules then they should not continue to be employees.
 
jtheune said:
While it's not a suggestion of a software fix for your problem, I would suggest you weigh the value of these employees to your company and decide if the time they spend accessing sites is worth it to your bottom line. If they still make you more money then they cost you then let them do what they want otherwise show them the door. I work for a very large company that has implemented web blocking and it's never worked as well as it should. Trying to block sites is a losing game and it actually costs the company productivity because of false positive blocks. I can't tell you the number of times I've been blocked from legitimate sites like vendors we do business with. Bottom line is if you can't trust your employees to follow the rules then they should not continue to be employees.
Click to expand...

Good argument... if people are going to browse the web instead of work, they'll just do it on their smartphone once you block the sites.
 
Why bother with software? I helped my friend setup a LAN Center / Cybercafe and just used OpenDNS. http://www.opendns.com

You can get a free, or paid, account. From there you can block sites by content type, specific URL's, et al. Oh, and you can whitelist sites too.
 
jtheune said:
While it's not a suggestion of a software fix for your problem, I would suggest you weigh the value of these employees to your company and decide if the time they spend accessing sites is worth it to your bottom line. If they still make you more money then they cost you then let them do what they want otherwise show them the door. I work for a very large company that has implemented web blocking and it's never worked as well as it should. Trying to block sites is a losing game and it actually costs the company productivity because of false positive blocks. I can't tell you the number of times I've been blocked from legitimate sites like vendors we do business with. Bottom line is if you can't trust your employees to follow the rules then they should not continue to be employees.
Click to expand...

While I agree in principle (and I work for a company that engages in heavy blocking to the point I have to use an aircard and my own netbook for some work), it's getting to the point with malware-laden sites that a simple drive-by download from a mis-typed internet address can cause a LOT of expensive damage to the network and productivity. Not to mention possible compromise of customer data.

You have to trust employees, but you also have to provide some protection against accidental compromise.
 
wsuffa said:
While I agree in principle (and I work for a company that engages in heavy blocking to the point I have to use an aircard and my own netbook for some work), it's getting to the point with malware-laden sites that a simple drive-by download from a mis-typed internet address can cause a LOT of expensive damage to the network and productivity. Not to mention possible compromise of customer data.

You have to trust employees, but you also have to provide some protection against accidental compromise.
Click to expand...

Your right that good protective software is a must but blocking content is not the right answer to the problem.
 
Consider getting a Sonicwall. Depending on how much legit traffic volume into the interwebs you have, you can get away with one of the cheaper ones. Also allows other things like central administration of antivirus protection on all your PCs, remote access into your network etc.
 
Try something like Covenant Eyes - a product I personally use, and became familiar with through a place I used to work at.

Ryan
 
We've got 70ish employees, do not filter internet access, and encourage they use Facebook.
 
I use a Sonicwall - excellent protection and blocking by category, time, etc., as you deem appropriate.

I actually block a lot less than I used to, but still find that some blocking is simply necessary. Might be different if we were in a business where our product and industry were both computer and Internet-related. In our case, the computers are strictly tools to assist in delivery of the work.

You may find whatever you choose to be most useful in getting reports of what are the worst abuses; I had an employee, file clerk, her work was piling up amazingly. She complained at length about how she was over-worked. Sonicwall's Viewpoint software showed me why - she spent, typically, over five hours per day surfing the Global InterWebz. Remember one day, she was 6:43 (six hours, forty-three minutes) shopping for cars.

---

By the way, the blocking is not just for staff- the "bosses" need it, too.
 
SCCutler said:
---

By the way, the blocking is not just for staff- the "bosses" need it, too.
Click to expand...

I am aware of one major company that filters everyone except.....

the IT group and the Legal department.
 
jtheune said:
While it's not a suggestion of a software fix for your problem, I would suggest you weigh the value of these employees to your company and decide if the time they spend accessing sites is worth it to your bottom line.
Click to expand...

Except that an employee exposed to unwanted internet porn, for example, can file a sexual harassment complaint, and that can be very expensive.
 
SCCutler said:
the computers are strictly tools to assist in delivery of the work.
Click to expand...

For my sales staff at the salvage yard, that's how I view it.

The salesperson I have in mind is acting similar to the file clerk you mentioned. If something like Sonicwall can just monitor and log the time spent and sights visited, then perhaps the knowledge that Big Brother is watching and discipline will occur when improper usage is found will be enough to curb the behavior without having to block out all of his usage.

And he is 100% commission sales too. So why he is willing to do activites that will detract from his paycheck in a big way is totally baffling. His pay is down 30% for this quarter and a he is very aware of why, but not showing desire to change. <shrudge>
 
AggieMike88 said:
For my sales staff at the salvage yard, that's how I view it.

The salesperson I have in mind is acting similar to the file clerk you mentioned. If something like Sonicwall can just monitor and log the time spent and sights visited, then perhaps the knowledge that Big Brother is watching and discipline will occur when improper usage is found will be enough to curb the behavior without having to block out all of his usage.

And he is 100% commission sales too. So why he is willing to do activites that will detract from his paycheck in a big way is totally baffling. His pay is down 30% for this quarter and a he is very aware of why, but not showing desire to change. <shrudge>
Click to expand...
Sounds like there maybe something more going on besides the distraction of the internet....
 
AggieMike88 said:
And he is 100% commission sales too. So why he is willing to do activites that will detract from his paycheck in a big way is totally baffling. His pay is down 30% for this quarter and a he is very aware of why, but not showing desire to change. <shrudge>
Click to expand...

Buy a sonicwall and deduct the cost from his cheque.
 
Yeah but software doesn't nudge nearly as well as a boss who says, "I've noticed you're playing on the computer instead of working and your productivity isn't what it could be. You need to fix that or tell me what's wrong, or I will be forced to fire you. What's going on here?"

You manage things, you lead people.
 
denverpilot said:
Yeah but software doesn't nudge nearly as well as a boss who says, "I've noticed you're playing on the computer instead of working and your productivity isn't what it could be. You need to fix that or tell me what's wrong, or I will be forced to fire you. What's going on here?"

You manage things, you lead people.
Click to expand...

What do you say to a high performer who meets or exceeds all benchmarks but still surfs/slacks cause he's more efficient than his peers? Reward him with more tasks than his peers to keep him busy?
 
Doggtyred said:
What do you say to a high performer who meets or exceeds all benchmarks but still surfs/slacks cause he's more efficient than his peers? Reward him with more tasks than his peers to keep him busy?
Click to expand...

In the case at hand, the employees productivity is down 30%. As long as the high-performer doesn't download kiddie-porn, let him allocate his time ever which way he pleases, he's on commission.
 
Doggtyred said:
What do you say to a high performer who meets or exceeds all benchmarks but still surfs/slacks cause he's more efficient than his peers? Reward him with more tasks than his peers to keep him busy?
Click to expand...

Happens all the time in tech jobs.

If he's making the grade then there's the option of just ignoring the other stuff if it's not affecting other employees.

Or you could raise his bar. Nothing says the rules have to be the same for him as others.

Or you could find projects for him to do. You'd probably have to compensate him appropriately.

Lots of bright folks go into Sales for just this reason. They can get things done faster/better than others and skate 30% of the time. That may be his personal reward to himself for working hard enough to meet your standards quickly, actually. He plows through his goals so he can surf later.

I can relate a bit in a different way. I'm a Sysadmin of a whole lot of computers. The more I automate and standardize my machines, the less fires to put out, the less need to be Johnny on the Spot, the more "dork around with new tech or other things" between big pushes to fix or replace or install things.

Sometimes you pull an all-nighter on a tight deadline to get machines set up so that if all goes well, you have a day off or two later and smooth sailing for a year so you can focus on other things.

It sounds like he doesn't have any carrot to grasp for that he really wants or needs bad enough to perform at a higher level. He gets the standard, meets the standard, and isn't interested in exceeding the standard.

Do you see enough talent there that he could be promoted down the road to teach others his skills or lead them? Think he's interested in that? Sometimes a comment "Your performance is good, but I'm looking for a consistently outstanding performer for the new leadership role I'll be looking to fill in a year from now," will kick a talented "slacker" into high gear. You, of course, have to follow through on your end of that bargain.

Gotta figure out what he wants. Good things flow from there. People rise to their goals, not yours, right? Finding common goals is the very definition of "doing business".

Find out what turns his crank. Exceptional managers do this. Incredibly cheap things can make or break a person's will to strive.

Example... Probably anyone here on PoA would bust their ass for a boss who'd say "If you hit this goal, you get paid time off for your airplane trips to Gaston's, 6Y9, and Oshkosh every year above and beyond your usual PTO. But the boss would gave to know you beyond the employee-employer relationship to even craft such a carrot.

Does the guy like fishing trips? Does he show signs of interest in management? What are the stresses in his life?

And, how can you leverage what he wants to do in life into a win-win for both of you? Can you "make his dreams come true" without even spending serious money?

Especially in Sales, you have to know what makes your people tick.
 
weilke said:
In the case at hand, the employees productivity is down 30%. As long as the high-performer doesn't download kiddie-porn, let him allocate his time ever which way he pleases, he's on commission.
Click to expand...

Additional data: he isn't a high performer. Middle at best. And has had several weeks where his pay has not exceeded the base amount (which is low to encourage good selling performance).

The employee has been on vacation for the past two days and will be gone next week. Already we are encountering some very frustrating deals he must have been managing and covering up, but now I and then ther staff are left to clean up. Some go against the way I want to conduct business.

So I for sure will have a come to gospel, and this gets fixed or else meeting upon his return.
 
From my perspective, the Sonicwall filtering is not so much for the purpose of compelling good behavior - because it cannot achieve that purpose.

It is valuable as a means of reminding someone when they step outside the bounds of productive working. Since, for lawyers, "productive" means getting a good proportion of billable hours to total working hours, and since we neither encourage nor allow purposeful overbilling, it is imperative that people remain on-task.

As a collateral benefit, the Sonicwall is an excellent firewall for bad stuff.
 
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