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The lines between cybersecurity and total control are blurring.
Cracked Labs research found that cybersecurity and compliance software often perceives employees as a threat, leading to the normalization of workplace surveillance. The Employees at Risk report examines SIEM and UEBA systems from Microsoft and Forcepoint.
According to a study that ran from 2021 to early 2024, mass collection of information in the workplace turns employees into suspects for no apparent reason. The lines between information security, corporate data protection, and fraud prevention are blurring.
It is worth noting that in 2023, Forcepoint sold part of its behavioral analytics and risk management business to TPG, which renamed the division to Everfox. Everfox representatives declined to comment on the connection of the new software with previous developments of Forcepoint.
The purpose of the work is to raise questions about the permissible limits of surveillance in the workplace. It is important to understand what data and profiling are really needed and what measures are being taken to prevent abuse.
Experts note that Microsoft Sentinel and Purview software, as well as Forcepoint Behavioral Analytics (now Everfox), are able to control almost all actions and statements of employees, including working with files, chats, messages and even screen activity. Systems use AI to identify "anomalous" behavior and calculate risk scores for each employee. Moreover, AI "learns" the norms of employee behavior over time.
These technologies promise not only to detect incidents, but also to prevent them in advance, which makes the tools similar to predictive police control technologies. Forcepoint, for example, offers to assess employees' financial difficulties, productivity, and intentions to quit, as well as analyze their communication and content for "negative" sentiment.
While companies have a responsibility to manage employees and ensure security, the study highlights that excessive surveillance can undermine trust and lead to erroneous conclusions. Microsoft recognizes that the company's systems can produce "false positives," so it offers tools to analyze and verify such cases.
Lawyers believe that employee monitoring causes serious privacy concerns and can violate human rights. They note that current legal regulations may not be sufficient to protect workers from such technologies. In the United States, there is also increasing attention to surveillance of workers, especially in the context of the protection of rights. Experts emphasize that such technologies can be used to predict and suppress trade union activity, which raises serious concerns.
Source
Cracked Labs research found that cybersecurity and compliance software often perceives employees as a threat, leading to the normalization of workplace surveillance. The Employees at Risk report examines SIEM and UEBA systems from Microsoft and Forcepoint.
According to a study that ran from 2021 to early 2024, mass collection of information in the workplace turns employees into suspects for no apparent reason. The lines between information security, corporate data protection, and fraud prevention are blurring.
It is worth noting that in 2023, Forcepoint sold part of its behavioral analytics and risk management business to TPG, which renamed the division to Everfox. Everfox representatives declined to comment on the connection of the new software with previous developments of Forcepoint.
The purpose of the work is to raise questions about the permissible limits of surveillance in the workplace. It is important to understand what data and profiling are really needed and what measures are being taken to prevent abuse.
Experts note that Microsoft Sentinel and Purview software, as well as Forcepoint Behavioral Analytics (now Everfox), are able to control almost all actions and statements of employees, including working with files, chats, messages and even screen activity. Systems use AI to identify "anomalous" behavior and calculate risk scores for each employee. Moreover, AI "learns" the norms of employee behavior over time.
These technologies promise not only to detect incidents, but also to prevent them in advance, which makes the tools similar to predictive police control technologies. Forcepoint, for example, offers to assess employees' financial difficulties, productivity, and intentions to quit, as well as analyze their communication and content for "negative" sentiment.
While companies have a responsibility to manage employees and ensure security, the study highlights that excessive surveillance can undermine trust and lead to erroneous conclusions. Microsoft recognizes that the company's systems can produce "false positives," so it offers tools to analyze and verify such cases.
Lawyers believe that employee monitoring causes serious privacy concerns and can violate human rights. They note that current legal regulations may not be sufficient to protect workers from such technologies. In the United States, there is also increasing attention to surveillance of workers, especially in the context of the protection of rights. Experts emphasize that such technologies can be used to predict and suppress trade union activity, which raises serious concerns.
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