No tweeting from the office

Further to my post about companies cracking down on data leaks from social networks, there is fresh evidence that firms are getting tired of workers poodling around on Facebook all day when they should be counting widgets (or something).

Employers are increasingly choosing to block access to popular social networking sites, according to a new survey from internet security provider Scansafe.

An analysis of more than a billion web requests processed by the company each month confirms a 20% increase in the number of customers blocking social networking sites in the last six months.

Currently, 76% of companies are choosing to block social networking and it is now a more popular category to block than online shopping (52%), weapons (75%), alcohol (64%), sports (51%) and webmail (58%).  I love the fact that, according to these figures, it is more difficult to access Twitter on your work computer than your favourite Kalashnikov discount store.

Spencer Parker, director of product management, says:

When web filtering first became an option for companies we generally saw them block access to typical categories such as pornography, illegal activities and hate and discrimination. In recent months, employers are obviously wising up to the dangers and negative impact on productivity linked to certain sites.

So does the ability to take a break and post your latest thoughts on Twitter or update your Facebook status help you work harder or act as a distraction?

Comments

[Chris Cherry]

I don't use Twitter or Facebook, but in the greatest spirit of the internet I decided to reply to let you know that I have no strong opinions on this topic.

Tradition, man. Why, if people couldn't access Facebook or Twitter from work, they'd have to go back to the days where they couldn't access Facebook or Twitter from work! As we all know, nothing got done and productivity was at an all-time low before the existence of social networking.