Arse Biscuits,.................. Our IT is now in Holland

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Arse Biscuits,.................. Our IT is now in Holland

30 posts & 18 voices | Started 10 months ago by MrOvershoot | Latest reply from somouk

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MrOvershoot - Member

Following this
"Dear All,

On Wednesday evening we will be changing the computer policies to use the Proxy Server in Europe instead of the one in Brentwood. For those that don’t know the Proxy Server sits between Internet Explorer and the Internet and controls which sites are allowed to be accessed or not. If after the change you find you experience any problems accessing a web site please log a call with EUHELP giving the web site address and the business reason for using the site. An example of the error you may receive is shown below. You may also find that some websites default to the Dutch versions. This can be corrected by typing the .co.uk address.

Apologies in advance for any inconvenience caused."

The only cycling related website I can get on is a small one I run!

How am I going to waste time/stay awake while on conference calls now!!

This is what I now get if I click on STW

Access Denied (policy_denied)

Your system policy has denied access to the requested URL.
URL: http://www.singletrackworld.com/

Category: Newsgroups/Forums (Newsgroups/Forums;Sports/Recreation)

Username: i179511

Can't even get on BBC sports!!

Can see the use of smart phones ramping up at work.

Posted 10 months ago #
cranberry - Member

So your proxy moved to Holland - you should try living here.

Posted 10 months ago #
samuri - Member

well to be fair you're getting blocked because your policy is stricter, not because it's in Holland.

Posted 10 months ago #
wwaswas - Member

any attempt to get around this is likely to lead to more attention being focused on you than you want, too...

Posted 10 months ago #
MrOvershoot - Member

samuri - Member

well to be fair you're getting blocked because your policy is stricter, not because it's in Holland.

Not strictly the full case TBH as its not corporate its just the EU side talking to one of the IT bods today (who they are letting go!) The EU side vs our UK & US apply restrictions with a very heavy hand, I had to get the Cyclescheme site reinstated as it came under Sports/recreation. Oh and despite being the previously allowed ebay by the big cheeses in the US for buying obsolete IT & PLC kit. EU says NO!

Talking to some of our traders they have lost many £1k as so many commodity sites were blocked!

Posted 10 months ago #
chvck - Member

Could you setup a VPN on your home network then VPN from work into that and browse that way? Not certain that'd work like but it might?

Posted 10 months ago #
ivantate - Member

use the phone, any arguing you do will only work against you in the long run.

Posted 10 months ago #
Zulu-Eleven - Member

You would have thought that the dutchies would have had a more enlightened view about what constituted a "dodgy" website

Posted 10 months ago #
higthepig - Member

So your proxy moved to Holland - you should try living here

I do, it is ace!

Mr Overshoot,

Not saying I would do this, but, if you used a thing called Expat Shield and then connect to the interweb, you can get the sites you mention. We wouldn't think of doing it out here though, watching UK tv sites etc, that would be very naughty.................

Posted 10 months ago #
MrOvershoot - Member

ivantate - Member

use the phone, any arguing you do will only work against you in the long run.

You are spot on, only I don't have a smart phone (more expense I guess)

I'm not arguing wholesale against some restrictions but maybe a time restricted browsing could be allowed?

Have spoken to a couple of my American counterparts this evening and they can't believe what is blocked here in the EU, as during any major Baseball/American football/Ice Hockey tournament or game 3/4 of the corporate internet traffic is sports related.

Posted 10 months ago #
samuri - Member

Not strictly the full case TBH as its not corporate its just the EU side talking to one of the IT bods today (who they are letting go!) The EU side vs our UK & US apply restrictions with a very heavy hand

So the policy got stricter?

The EU doesn't control private or corporate browsing activity any more than the UK does. This is a corporate decision.

Although I re-read your references to EU as being your European arm reather than the EU council. Sorry.

Posted 10 months ago #
allthepies - Member

Schmoke shome drugsh ?

Posted 10 months ago #
MrOvershoot - Member

Sorry John I didn't mean EU in the normal way!

We come under EU & Ivory Coast in regards to IT system as in my log in is EU/my user name.

If you look at my last full post, my American counterparts can't see why the policy has been implemented in such a draconian manner?

Posted 10 months ago #
higgo - Member

I blame the wife.

Posted 10 months ago #
MrOvershoot - Member

higgo - Member

I blame the wife.

I would too, only she's far too sensible, and thinks its all a load of carp.

Given that I work in Liverpool I can see a lot of really pissed off people come the start of the season!

Oh and just to add some fuel to the fire Higgs my new boss is a Welsh Man U supporter

Posted 10 months ago #
samuri - Member

Yeah, I see. Me neither. Should be standard corporate wide.

Posted 10 months ago #
FuzzyWuzzy - Member

Probably worth testing if something like gotomypc works (running on your home PC) and just connect to that then surf on your home PC

Posted 10 months ago #
The Flying Ox - Member

Could you setup a VPN on your home network then VPN from work into that and browse that way? Not certain that'd work like but it might?

This. I've seen it done on our work computers, but I've yet to figure out how to set up a VPN server on my home linux desktop and get it to run at work through Citrix XenApp on Vista.

Posted 10 months ago #
DrJ - Member

So, if I read correctly, you're pissed off because your employer no longer wants to provide facilities for you to waste company time ...

Anyway, as someone said, be happy it's just your servers and not your desk that got moved to The Swamp.

Posted 10 months ago #
scuttler - Member

www.youtube.com/watch?v=aRtNfb6D3Mc

Posted 10 months ago #
m1kea - Member

chvck

Could you setup a VPN on your home network then VPN from work into that and browse that way? Not certain that'd work like but it might?

I think I can guess what content filtering system the OP's company is using and if they're as on the ball as it looks, ALL the proxy avoidance tricks are blocked so good luck with that.

And harsh as it sounds, Dr J is right with his post.

Posted 10 months ago #
MrOvershoot - Member

Ha first post on my phone!
God its a bit sparse compared to my usual browsing

Talk to me about proper smart phones as this is only a standard nokia phone that has internet's
tried three times to send this so if it works then I expect there to three identical posts :-/

Posted 10 months ago #
MrOvershoot - Member

DrJ - Member

So, if I read correctly, you're pissed off because your employer no longer wants to provide facilities for you to waste company time ...

Anyway, as someone said, be happy it's just your servers and not your desk that got moved to The Swamp.

I'm not a desk jockey DrJ so my job can't be moved but 1/3 of my life involves sitting in front of a screen ordering stuff & researching engineering solutions
OK so the STW bit is more of a personal irritation for those times when I'm forced to listen in on company conf calls, but my boss is now fuming as they have now blocked my eBay which was sanctioned through our US owners as I buy lots of engineering equipment that way.

I'm quite happy if they put a cap on personal internet time as was our previous arrangement. But having read our IT policy it quite clearly states that personal use should be restricted to break times.

At a moments notice they have changed our policy without any consultation, I'm sure they can probably do this but considering they always spout out guff about only wanting the best for our workforce it does smack of big brother.

Posted 10 months ago #
DrJ - Member

I agree actually. If it's ok for smoke breaks to be sanctioned with a special smoking room, why not "surfing breaks"?

Posted 10 months ago #
CaptainFlashheart - Member

What about cigar breaks, too?

"Just popping out for a smoke, back in an hour and a half or so.."

Posted 10 months ago #
Travis - Member

A company I visit, have "Surf Breaks" They have 2 pcs next to the coffee bar, which aren't connected to the work server, for the staff to use.
Saves any viruses being downloaded to the work system, and also, you can see how long people don't sit at their desks and work.

Posted 10 months ago #
samuri - Member

I think I can guess what content filtering system the OP's company is using and if they're as on the ball as it looks, ALL the proxy avoidance tricks are blocked so good luck with that.

Well it looks like a squid error message so they're probably using Bluecoats. Depends on whether SSL interception is turned on or not. If not, creating an SSL VPN to a home device should be fairly easy and might work, for a while at least. I suspect they'd treat it as proxy avoidance so if they are actively monitoring usage, it might get noticed and actioned. Probably not advisable.

You could always get a 3G enabled tablet Mr Overshoot, Advent Vega or something. (with a Mifi Connection or just tether to your phone)

Posted 10 months ago #
MrOvershoot - Member

I'm not looking to do anything naughty or circumnavigate security.
I can pretty much guarantee anyone caught doing that will be out the door faster than the Daily Mail can print an article about foreigners claiming millions off the honest tax payer.

I'm just having a bit of a selfish moan TBH, over the last 8 years I have saved our IT dept many £1000s by sorting out most of the local day to day IT problems. Including rewiring all the sites switch units & even installing new routers over the Christmas period which I don't get paid for (more fool me I guess)
Well from now on if they want me to play by their new petty rules they can incur a whole stack of mileage & expense up to the NW and sort out every little issue as "I'm out"

Posted 10 months ago #
samuri - Member

You could get a job *in* security. We all have our own backdoors out to the internet. How are you with designing networks and firewalls/VPN's/Strong auth etc etc?

Posted 10 months ago #
somouk - Member

What you need to do is find a proxy avoidance site that their filtering doesn't know about. Do you know what type or brand of filter it is?

Or if you want to be clever you could put your own out on the web and don't tell anyone else about it. That way it will never appear in the top 20 lists and most likely never make it into a report infront of someone who could block it.

I work in the Web filtering industry so could helo you out

Posted 10 months ago #

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