Why block websites in your company? To answer this question, we need to delve a little deeper into this topic. Let's imagine a scenario where the internet simply ceased to exist. How would you continue communicating with your family and friends as would your routine in the work environment? No exchanging emails, carrying out manual reports, establishing contact with customers and suppliers only by phone…
Although all of this has been a reality for decades, thinking about a world without the internet is almost inconceivable. However, as good as this tool is, it is also a risk for companies. Because of this, many managers are seeking to block websites in their companies.
The internet is a completely indispensable communication channel in today's reality, but it must be used intelligently and efficiently. We know that within business this tool plays a fundamental role in promoting products and services, communicating between employees, customers and suppliers, as well as providing an exchange of data and information in real time.
However, no matter how great the advantages, the internet, when used incorrectly, can cause countless problems for companies. Improper access during working hours can disrupt productivity and expose company data and devices to various types of cyber risks.
There are currently numerous cyber threats that can put your company's security and reliability at risk, such as data leaks. With the emergence of the LGPD, this problem became even worse, due to the penalties that the legislation can apply. Understand more:
Blocking websites is a strategy that has been gaining ground among businesses. This measure helps managers have more assertive control over everything that happens in the company and determine what type of content can or cannot be accessed by employees during working hours.
But how can you block websites without compromising your employees' freedom of navigation? Contrary to popular belief, it is possible to carry out this type of blocking in a personalized and efficient way . Check out this material we prepared and find out how!
What is the relationship between internet access patterns and employee productivity?
Access to the internet has brought countless benefits and managed to transform reality within companies. Activities that were previously done manually and time-consuming can now be completed extremely efficiently in the shortest possible time. These facilities have made internet access a fundamental resource for business success and growth, regardless of the sector in which it operates or the size of the company.
However, despite delivering countless benefits, the internet continues to be one of the main causes of unproductivity in the market. Within the period contracted to carry out activities relating to the company, the worker ends up carrying out inappropriate actions, which take time, cause delays and encourage the incidence of errors within the business.
Have you ever heard of “ cyberslacking ”? In the corporate world, this term is used to refer to time wasted in random internet browsing, which is one of the great villains of productivity.
In a scenario where Brazil was already experiencing a retraction in worker productivity (with a drop of 7.9% in 2021), the 4.5% reduction in productivity per hours worked ended up demonstrating how this concern is not unreasonable.
In this sense, blocking certain resources, websites and tools in the digital environment ends up becoming an intelligent and efficient solution. By reducing access to pages that disrupt workers' focus and waste time, the company is able to contribute to greater productivity and achieve expected results , without the need for greater investment.
Is it possible to block websites without disturbing employees?
As we have seen, the internet can bring several benefits to companies, bringing more practicality and intelligence to their processes. However, we need to remember that it is still a major risk to productivity and cybersecurity.
The fully free internet favors access to individuals who cause a lot of damage to the business. Even though the company has an Internet Access Policy that recommends smart people how this tool should be used within the business environment, many employees end up wasting their time accessing various types of content inappropriately , such as:
- Social media;
- Personal emails;
- E-commerce sites;
- Gaming and betting platforms;
- Entertainment website;
- Video and streaming platforms;
- Website with pornographic or violent content;
- Messaging platform;
- And many others.
These types of content, in addition to harming workers' productivity, also represent a major risk for businesses. There are countless traps planted on the internet to deceive users and encourage the application of scams and implement the main cyber threats.
Strategies such as phishing , which uses email to deliver malicious applications or steal user data, end up causing countless losses for businesses. ransomware scams . Through this strategy, cybercriminals encrypt data relevant to the business and demand the payment of a ransom to return this access.
In addition to causing substantial financial losses for companies, this strategy also damages the business's image in the market among consumers .
Because of these risks, blocking websites has become a necessity for companies. Currently, it is essential to have an efficient tool that helps carry out this blocking and protects business information.
However, internet access control is not just about blocking any and all pages that are not related to the company's activities. We know that, in many cases, employees need access to certain resources, such as search tools, to ensure the correct and efficient execution of their daily tasks and a total lockdown could end up negatively impacting business results .
The indiscriminate blocking of websites can harm freedom of navigation and cause great dissatisfaction on the part of employees . We all know that dissatisfaction harms the organizational climate and makes the company environment unpleasant for everyone, so it is necessary to pay attention to these factors and block websites in an intelligent and strategic way.
For this reason, it is necessary to have a complete and efficient tool that helps deliver all the resources and benefits that your company needs. There are several resources on the market that can help you carry out this blocking, such as openDNS , pfSense or DNSFilter , but it is important to keep an eye on what your company really needs, such as:
- worker productivity
- Deliver more quality results;
- Ensure focus on tasks that are truly important to the business;
- Maintain the level of employee satisfaction;
- Increase the protection of data and information stored by the company;
- Reduce the cost of devices infected with malicious applications, such as viruses, malware, spyware, trojans, and other threats;
- Reduce vulnerability to prevent cyber attacks;
- Use company resources more intelligently and efficiently;
- Between others.
Use the correct tools
As we said previously, managers need to find a tool that delivers all the necessary features for efficient blocking. This means that, even though it is apparently more practical, completely blocking resources can be harmful to your business.
Due to this factor, the tool used must allow managers to monitor the behavior and activities carried out during the day to day life of each user and contribute to the creation of personalized internet access policies . Based on this information, it is possible to establish more efficient blocking, using specific groups and users according to the company's needs. This way, it is possible to add all the advantages that your business needs to remain productive and deliver the expected results.
Blocking websites is much more than having total control over internet access. It is necessary for the company to use a specialized and intuitive tool, which delivers benefits and brings practicality to everyday life. Contact us and find out how we can help you in this mission.
Until later!
