Every business with employees using the internet faces the same issue: how to prevent internet abuse. Businesses are losing money by the minute because of unproductive employees visiting non–business related websites, web threats like malware and phishing penetrating their network, and legal liability issues. The common solution is to rely upon a UTM (unified threat management solution) which provides only basic network control and visibility, and the enforcement of an Acceptable Use Policy. 

Online distractions and malware

Every company that uses internet in the workplace has a problem with employees’ productivity, safety, and behavior. Here are a few stats that may help you understand: 

  • According to study done by International Data Corporation, 30-40% of an employee’s Internet activity is non-work related 
  • 65% of employees report using the internet for non-work purposes throughout the workday (Connect Solutions) 
  • 43% of cyber-attacks target small businesses (2019 Verizon Data Breach Report)
  • 95% of security breaches are due to human error

Social media is a very hot topic when it comes to usage in workplace. Many employees can justify their use of a few platforms, rightfully so. For example, the sales team will require access to LinkedIn to connect with potential clients. Therefore, it will be challenging for employers to block all social media from their network. 

Another issue that arises with the use of the internet is corporate malware. Malware is malicious software, program, or file that is considered harmful to a computer user. Computer viruses, worms, Trojan horses, and spyware are all examples of malware. Malware is a major threat to businesses since it can break the security infrastructure of a system. 

To learn more about the latest cybersecurity threats and how to protect yourself against them, check out our whitepaper on cyber crime and internet security. 

Companies need to properly manage employees’ internet access and publish an Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) in order avoid legal liabilities. This should be supplemented with internet filtering and monitoring to reduce productivity loss and vulnerability to network attacks. This way companies can catch to employees’ non business-related activity early on and take actions accordingly. 

nFilter and onGuard for Business 

An ideal solution for this problem meets these requirements: 

  • Reduces bandwidth abuse and mitigates legal liability concerns
  • Manages roaming laptops and enforces Acceptable Use Policies both on and off the network
  • Monitors, filters, and blocks access to non-business-related web content so employees remain productive
  • Blocks viruses, malware, and other malicious applications. With fewer network outages resulting from system infections, IT resources can focus on other business-related issues and projects

Netsweeper’s nFilter and onGuard for Business are unique web filtering and monitoring products that have been built to meet these requirements.  

nFilter For Business allows you to control internet access, review online activity, and protect your network from harmful content. 

onGuard For Business allows you to monitor and report potentially harmful online activity in real-time and identify at-risk behavior. Together, these internet filtering and monitoring solutions give complete insight and control over network activity for businesses. 

To find out more about how nFilter and onGuard can help you increase productivity in the workplace, visit netsweeper.com/productivity and sign up for a free 7-Day Productivity Assessment.