Social networking in the workplace is a major dilemma for today’s businesses. The question is: “Does it help or hurt the organization?”
Although the general issue is always the same, the specific challenges vary. They range from productivity losses, to legal risks, to bandwidth drains and security problems. And even more specifically, these challenges are associated with various types of sites that employees often visit for personal reasons. A few years ago, pornography sites presented the greatest challenge, while today social networking sites seem to be 'number one' with Facebook being the most popular.
A survey conducted by Nucleus Research showed that 77 percent of workers who have a Facebook account use it during work hours. Of those who use Facebook at work, 87% said they could not define a clear business reason for accessing the site, and some reported using it as much as two hours per day.
Wavecrest Computing has been helping businesses and other organizations deal with Internet usage issues for more than twelve years. In general, these entities all face the same challenge, i.e., how can the organization maximize the benefits of social networking access while minimizing the risks of personal surfing at work?
Wavecrest Computing discusses these issues in their white paper "Social Networking or Social Not-Working?" They address the question “To what extent, if any, should workers be permitted to engage in social networking ‘on the job,’ and why?” and offer recommendations, such as a "well-designed Web-use policy."
Dennis McCabe, VP of Business Development at Wavecrest Computing, states, "A well-designed and thoughtful policy can go a long way toward controlling the use of social networking sites without damaging morale. To achieve this outcome though, management must clearly communicate the policy, including its underlying rationale, to the entire workforce. Once employees understand the risks (to themselves as well as the company) associated with at-work social networking, the vast majority will accept any restrictions in good spirit."
Read the full white paper, "Social Networking or Social Not-working?"
About Wavecrest Computing
Founded in 1996, Wavecrest Computing is a recognized B2B leader in policy-based Web-use management solutions. The company’s products are relied on by IT personnel, HR professionals and business managers around the world to proactively address issues of Internet abuse, legal liability, security threats, workforce productivity and misuse of bandwidth. Wavecrest has been profitable since 1997, and sales have increased steadily since then. Among our more than 3,000 clients are Procter & Gamble, Lockheed Martin, HP, Volvo, British Telecom, Edward Jones, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, IBM, Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway (BNSF) and a growing list of global enterprises and government agencies.
We’re Wavecrest Computing, a leading developer of Internet usage management products. Today is our thirteenth birthday. So we’re taking a moment to celebrate, look back, and reflect on some of our accomplishments over the years.
Since 1996, from our base in Melbourne, Florida, we have developed, marketed and supported a spectrum of innovative Internet monitoring and reporting solutions. Our products help all types of organizations manage their employees’ online activities and ensure compliance with acceptable use policies. Starting thirteen years ago with a single customer, our client base has grown to more than 3,000 organizations, many of them Fortune 500 companies and high profile government agencies.
We’re extremely proud of this. But it didn’t just ‘happen.’
The credit goes to an unusually talented and well-led team of development, sales and support people. They all work directly for Wavecrest; none are outsource or temporary employees. For years these dedicated men and women have made sure that we consistently deliver the products and services that our customers need to meet the many dynamic challenges associated with use of the Internet in the workplace.
And those challenges have certainly evolved over the years. Examples include the very real and seriously increasing risks of productivity losses, bandwidth drains, legal liability, and network security threats. And as the Internet grew and the challenges escalated, we have kept pace every step of the way.
Our first product— a basic software application called ProxyReporter—read and analyzed employers’ outbound Web logs. From that data, it then produced reports that helped management and IT monitor employees’ use of Web access.
Then, as the Internet became more sophisticated, we went on to develop a series of increasingly robust Web-use monitoring and filtering products designed to suit a variety of customers and network infrastructures. Our monitoring products now include Cyfin Reporter—a highly sophisticated and scalable logfile analyzer/reporter—and Cyfin Proxy, a standalone Web proxy/monitor/reporter. Our combination filtering/reporting products include CyBlock for ISA—a combination filter/reporter system for use with Microsoft ISA products—and CyBlock Proxy, a standalone proxy/filter/reporting solution.
Our latest innovation is CyBlock Appliance, a hardware based Internet-usage management device. Designed to monitor and help control use of all Internet protocols, CyBlock Appliance is a standalone proxy, monitor, filter and reporter.
Of particular interest, in recent years, we have upgraded all of these products to deal with emerging issues associated with a variety of Web 2.0 advances such as social networking. At the same time we have been busy incorporating new features such as protocol filtering and trend reporting.
Through the years our products have been well received and proven to be highly reliable and cost-effective, and we back them all with a 90-day money-back guarantee.
As proud as we are of our products, we take equal pride in our support services. When customers call, they talk to a real person—here in America—and they get personalized attention. Our support personnel, all of whom have been with us for years, know that customer satisfaction is key to the company’s (and their own) success. And as a result of their responsiveness and professionalism, they have received literally hundreds of kudos and compliments over the years.
So, in sum, we have much to celebrate and be proud of.
Happy Birthday, Wavecrest!
About Wavecrest
Founded in 1996, Wavecrest Computing is a recognized B2B leader in policy-based Web-use management solutions. The company’s products are relied on by IT personnel, HR professionals and business managers around the world to proactively address issues of Internet abuse, legal liability, security threats, workforce productivity and misuse of bandwidth. Wavecrest has been profitable since 1997, and sales have increased steadily since then. Among our more than 3,000 clients are Procter & Gamble, Lockheed Martin, HP, Volvo, British Telecom, Edward Jones, Blue Cross/Blue Shield, IBM, Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway (BNSF) and a growing list of global enterprises and government agencies.
Wavecrest Computing recently released new versions of its CyBlock and Cyfin Internet filtering and monitoring products. These new versions include enhancements to Wavecrest Computing's Array feature, which allows organizations to manage multiple CyBlock or Cyfin installations from a centralized server. The array makes for easy administration when managing different locations or a large number of employees.
In these newest versions of CyBlock and Cyfin, the Array now has more synchronization capability. Any time a new machine is added to the array, it is autmotically synchronized with the primary (or central) machine. This ensures that any secondary machine is updated with any policy (filtering and/or monitoring) settings, Groups and IDs settings, report settings and more. (Note: The array feature is currently not available with CyBlock Appliance.)
For full new release information on each product, visit Wavecrest Computing's Support Forum.
New prospects can download a free 30-day trial of any Wavecrest software product. View all products.
Upgrades are available at no cost to current Wavecrest customers. Visit Wavecrest's Support Center for access to the most recent upgrades.
About Wavecrest
Wavecrest Computing has been providing Internet monitoring and filtering solutions to business, government, and educational organizations worldwide since 1996. Their monitoring and filtering software products--known for accuracy, usability, scalability and cost-effectiveness--are found in more than 3,500 commercial and government organizations of all types and sizes. Wavecrest's customer base includes well-known names such as Procter and Gamble, U.S. Department of Justice, BMW, Bayer, Burlington Northern Santa Fe, U.S. Coast Guard, IBM and many others.
Wavecrest Computing, an industry leader in the field of Internet filtering and monitoring, recently created a Twitter account to help keep their customers updated on product and industry developments. Wavecrest's tweets include updates on the latest product releases, technical and usage tips, and company and industry news on Internet usage issues that affect businesses and schools. This includes Internet-related news that addresses current bandwidth concerns, productivity losses, legal liability and security threats.
"Twitter is another great way for us to communicate to our customers and get them the information they need in a quick, short message," says Dennis McCabe, VP of Business Development at Wavecrest Computing. "Our goal has always been to provide multiple resources to our customers so that they can get the information they need."
Wavecrest wants to keep the lines of communication open with its customers by using tools such as Twitter. This helps ensure that their customers keep apprised of the latest updates to their CyBlock and Cyfin products and how to fully use the products' features and capabilities.
About Wavecrest
Wavecrest Computing has been providing Internet monitoring and filtering solutions to business, government, and educational organizations worldwide since 1996. Their monitoring and filtering software products--known for accuracy, usability, scalability and cost-effectiveness--are found in more than 3,500 commercial and government organizations of all types and sizes. Wavecrest's customer base includes well-known names such as Procter and Gamble, U.S. Department of Justice, BMW, Bayer, Burlington Northern Santa Fe, U.S. Coast Guard, IBM and many others.
For Twitter Updates: http://www.twitter.com/wavecrestnet
New versions of Wavecrest Computing's CyBlock and Cyfin Internet filtering and monitoring software were released today. Below is a list of some of the enhancements included in these versions.
New prospects can download a free 30-day trial of any Wavecrest software product. View all products.
Upgrades are available at no cost to current Wavecrest customers. Visit Wavecrest's Support Center for access to the most recent upgrades.
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) recently renewed Cyfin Reporter for the seventh consecutive year. Cyfin Reporter enables the DOJ to monitor up to 100,000 employees' Web usage simultaneously. The Department continues to use Cyfin Reporter because of its robust performance, accuracy and scalability and the many benefits it provides, i.e., improved productivity and decreases in bandwidth consumption, legal liability and security threats.
It's important for employers to ensure that their employees are using the Internet in a productive manner and are not accessing sites that hurt productivity or degrade network performance. Cyfin Reporter helps organizations do this by providing actionable and accurate employee Web-use reports. Its features include automatic abuse detection, interactive drill-down, and a report scheduler that runs and distributes reports automatically.
Dennis McCabe, Vice President of Business Development at Wavecrest Computing, states, "the great thing about Cyfin Reporter is that it not only allows organizations to monitor 'bad' sites, but it also allows them to monitor those sites that employees should be utilizing on a regular basis, e.g., the company's Web site or intranet." This is what makes Cyfin Reporter a truly effective tool for managing Web use.
For 12 years, Wavecrest Computing has been providing Internet filtering and monitoring solutions to business, government, and educational organizations worldwide. Wavecrest's customer base includes well-known names such as the Department of Veterans Affairs, Procter and Gamble, Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway, Bridgestone, Mazda and many others. Government agencies and educational institutions can purchase Wavecrest products through GSA's Federal Supply Schedule at a substantial discount.
Wavecrest Computing released a new hardware filtering product, CyBlock Appliance. Its features include:
New versions of Wavecrest Computing's CyBlock and Cyfin filtering and monitoring software were also released today. Below are a list of corrections made.
New prospects can download a free 30-day trial of any Wavecrest software product. View all products.
If you are interested in getting more information on our new product, the CyBlock Appliance, please fill out this More Info Form.
Upgrades are available at no cost to current Wavecrest customers. Visit Wavecrest's Support Center for access to the most recent upgrades.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs recently purchased Wavecrest Computing's Internet monitoring software, Cyfin Reporter, to manage employee Web use. The VA selected Cyfin Reporter because it provides accurate reports, requires minimal administration, and easily adapts to changes in the network environment.
With flexible monitoring and reporting capabilities, Cyfin Reporter gives management a clear view into employees' Web activity. Its reports offer high and low-level content-categorized reports covering the activity of a single user, a specific department or the entire organization.
Cyfin Reporter's accurate Web-use reports distinguish it from the competition. It differentiates a user's specific click actions from automatically downloaded hits (banners, ads, audio, etc.) that can distort measurements of users' online activity. Dennis McCabe, VP of Business Development at Wavecrest Computing, said that when developing Cyfin Reporter, "providing accurate and actionable data that organizations could rely on was a top priority for Wavecrest."
Cyfin's benefits don't stop at accuracy. It is compatible with a wide range of networks and 95 different logfile formats. It supports multiple logfile formats and locations within a single network and can easily adapt to changes and read new devices placed into the network infrastructure. This means that Cyfin's Web-use reports are always in the same format regardless of the configured logfile types. The majority of its features can also be automated, thus decreasing the amount of time IT spends on Web-use management.
Cyfin Reporter's flexibility--along with its intuitive report design and automatic abuse detection--makes it very easy to administer. These same features make it easy for managers to quickly spot problem areas related to network security, legal liability, and workforce productivity.
Wavecrest Computing has been providing Internet monitoring and filtering solutions to business, government, and educational organizations worldwide since 1996. Their monitoring and filtering software products--known for accuracy, usability, scalability and cost-effectiveness--are found in more than 3,500 commercial and government organizations of all types and sizes. Wavecrest's customer base includes well-known names such as Procter and Gamble, U.S. Department of Justice, BMW, Bayer, Pepsi Cola, HP, Burlington Northern Santa Fe, U.S. Coast Guard, IBM and many others. Government and education organizations can purchase Wavecrest software through the company's GSA Federal Supply Schedule Contract (#GS35F0212L).
New versions of Wavecrest Computing's CyBlock and Cyfin monitoring and filtering software were released today. They include the following new features and enhancements.
New prospects can download a free 30-day trial of any Wavecrest software product. View all products.
Upgrades are available at no cost to current Wavecrest customers. Visit Wavecrest's Support Center for access to the most recent upgrades.
The U.S. Department of Justice has been using Cyfin Reporter Internet monitoring software since June 2002 to monitor Web access for their 100,000 users. They recently renewed their product license with Wavecrest Computing once again for the sixth year.
Before initially purchasing Cyfin Reporter in 2002, the DOJ conducted rigorous testing to ensure the product’s scalability, accuracy, and reliability. Cyfin Reporter proved it could easily handle the DOJ’s workload and continues to do so today while providing them with accurate Web-use reports. The fact that the Department of Justice has renewed their Cyfin Reporter software license for the last six years is a testament to the product’s accuracy and reliability.
Wavecrest Computing’s accurate Web-use reports are what distinguish their Internet monitoring and filtering software from the competition. Wavecrest Computing ensures accuracy in reports by differentiating between a user’s specific click actions from automatically downloaded hits (banners, ads, audio, etc.) that can distort measurements of users’ online activity.
Wavecrest’s reports also focus closely on the number of clicks instead of attempting to gauge the amount of time a user actually spent on a Web page. The latter can be very misleading, i.e., the fact that a user downloaded a Web page to a browser doesn't necessarily mean that he or she was actually looking at that page while it was "open." The user could have easily been interrupted or left their browser open while attending a meeting. This makes accurate “time on site” measurements virtually impossible.
“When using employee Web-use reports to make important decisions regarding personnel and Internet policy, organizations want to know that they are using an Internet monitoring solution that provides reliable data in its reports,” states Dennis McCabe, VP of Business Development. “Through accurate reporting, our products help organizations effectively implement and enforce Internet policies, improve workforce productivity and limit potential legal exposure from inappropriate Internet use.”
For 11 years, Wavecrest Computing has been providing Internet filtering and monitoring solutions to business, government, and educational organizations worldwide. Wavecrest's customer base includes well-known names such as the Department of Defense Cyber Crime Center, Procter and Gamble, Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway, Miller Brewing Company, London Stock Exchange, Mazda, Bayer, Pepsi Cola, IBM and many others. For government agencies, Wavecrest software can be purchased through GSA as the company is a GSA Federal Supply Schedule Contractor (#GS35F0212L).
Wavecrest Computing is offering special pricing for SurfControl customers that are nearing the end of their product license and looking for a new Web filtering solution. SurfControl was recently purchased by Websense, who just announced that it was going to stop supporting SurfControl products in the near future. This means that all SurfControl customers will have to either switch to a Websense product or begin looking for another Web filtering solution.
Dennis McCabe, VP of Business Development at Wavecrest Computing, stated that “Wavecrest understands that it is not always easy researching and looking for a new Web filtering product. That is why we are offering to help SurfControl customers easily transition to a Wavecrest product by offering competitive pricing and free technical support.” In addition, Wavecrest offers a free 30-day trial on all of its software products; this allows prospects to fully evaluate the product before buying.
Wavecrest’s Web filtering solutions include CyBlock ISA and CyBlock Proxy. CyBlock ISA was built specifically for networks that utilize one or more ISA Servers, and it can support any size organization. CyBlock Proxy, on the other hand, is a combination proxy server and Web filter that is ideal for small to medium-size networks. Both products can block over 500 million Web pages that are built into Wavecrest’s 81 content categories, and both are customizable to easily fit any organization’s Web-use policy. Highly affordable, both products feature reliable, easy-to-read reports and automatic abuse detection.
Wavecrest Computing has been providing Internet monitoring and filtering solutions to business, government, and educational organizations worldwide since 1996. Their monitoring, filtering and reporting solutions--known for their accuracy, usability, scalability and cost-effectiveness--are found in more than 3,500 commercial and government organizations of all types and sizes. Wavecrest's customer base includes well-known names such as Procter and Gamble, U.S. Department of Justice, Department of Defense Cyber Crime Unit, BMW, Bayer, Pepsi Cola, London Stock Exchange, Miller Brewing Company, IBM and many others.
SurfControl customers interested in Wavecrest products should contact the Wavecrest sales team by sending an email to sales@wavecrest.net or calling 877-442-9346 toll-free (U.S. and Canada only). If you are outside the U.S. or Canada, you can call Wavecrest directly at 001-321-953-5351, ext. 3.
New versions of CyBlock and Cyfin Internet filtering and monitoring software are now available. Take advantage of the latest features today!
New prospects can download a free 30-day trial of any Wavecrest product. View all products.
Upgrades are available at no cost to current Wavecrest customers. Visit Wavecrest's Support Center for access to the most recent upgrades.
Maintenance Releases for CyBlock and Cyfin were recently distributed. CyBlock ISA 5.7.1 and Cyfin Reporter 7.7.1 now support a direct connection to the MSDE database. Additionally, Cyfin Reporter now offers logfile support for CyberGuard Firewall and FortiGate Syslog.
Additional enhancements for all products include:
Upgrades are available at no cost to current Wavecrest customers. Visit Wavecrest's Support Center for access to the most recent upgrades.
New versions of Wavecrest Computing's CyBlock and Cyfin monitoring and filtering software have been released. The following new features and enhancements are now available.
Upgrades are available at no cost to current Wavecrest customers. Visit Wavecrest's Support Center for access to the most recent upgrades.