Install it in a sandbox.
Ask HN: My client want an agent on my laptop. Is this the new normal?
151–160 of 506 posts
Re: Ask HN: My client want an agent on my laptop. Is this the new normal?
#152Earlier quoted context omitted.
Had a quick look at drata.com. Looks like vendorware. Some manager got hoodwinked into buying the product to justify their existence. Now they have to force everybody to use it to justify the exorbitant price.
> hoodwinked Or they just saw an opportunity :)
Nice day out (aka Jolly) at the golf club :-)
Re: Ask HN: My client want an agent on my laptop. Is this the new normal?
#153Do you object outright to spyware, or to the client wanting to run their spyware on your equipment? It sounds like the spyware is non negotiable and I personally wouldn’t have issue with it if the client also provides a laptop on which to run it . The client is free to do whatever the hell they like with their own hardware . What’s objectionable about situations like this is the client wanting to have their spyware c…
> Do you object outright to spyware, or to the client wanting to run their spyware on your equipment? I don't know for a fact that it is spyware. For now I just think of it as an "hostile agent". I object because a) I don't want frustrations at work. I want to focus on the problems I am there to solve (which are quite interesting), b) I don't want a hostile agent from a company selling data to "targeted marketing" in…
Thanks for responding and writing up more details. I empathise with the frustration of having to follow rules for rules' sake.
Another approach you can try is to conform to their requirements on one machine, but do all your actual work on another.
In the past I've been faced with similar situations where corporate IT required ne to run a "security agent" if I wanted to bring my own device to their network. I ended up bringing a Raspberry Pi which ran their "security agent", but then I did all my work on a laptop that connected through the Pi via NAT.
This was at a high school where I was a teacher. The "agent" did an SSL MITM attack, allowing the school IT to see all my traffic. I'm fine with needing that stuff to keep the kids safe but I objected to the school needing to inspect staff traffic. If they mistrusted me to the level of needing to read my email, what the hell were they doing leaving me in a roomful of children all day?
If you had two spare Pis you could do a three machine shit-sandwich: (1) trusted-pi is all yours and connects to your home network offering strictly controlled minimal internet access to... (2) the security-theatre-pi, running the client's weird spy/monitoring software; and then (3) your personal laptop connects via the security-theatre-pi.
I'd prefer to be direct and up-front with them – it doesn't feel great to have to be duplicitous with people the way I did / suggest you do – but a $50 pi might be able to tick their box and let you get on with the interesting stuff.
Re: Ask HN: My client want an agent on my laptop. Is this the new normal?
#154Earlier quoted context omitted.
If this is really the kind of things this company would do… why are you working for them?
> If this is really the kind of things this company would do… Because, until last week they didn't. Now I have to figure out if I'm just an unreasonable, stubborn old guy, or if this requirement is out of band.
Tell them to provide you with a Virtual Desktop or a dedicated Laptop..never install Spyware on your own machine.
Re: Ask HN: My client want an agent on my laptop. Is this the new normal?
#155One-way mirrors are not sustainable for performance of non-prisoner workers.
Do we need an open-source repo/db/blockchain to track companies which track workers? This could monitor certification/regulatory requirements, benchmark tracking across near-peer companies, real-world impact on human performance, and supply chain integrity of tracking vendors. If a tracking company is breached, it would be possible to flag all of the companies using that vendor.
Re: Ask HN: My client want an agent on my laptop. Is this the new normal?
#156If you are a freelancer then your contract should allow you to do work for others. In which case, your response to this client has to be "Sorry, but my business laptop potentially has data from other clients on it. I can't let you install this monitoring agent without violating my contractual confidentially agreement with those other clients. I always maintain client confidentiality and will do the same for you. If y…
> If you want to ship me a dedicated laptop for your engagement, I would be happy to install whatever you want on it. I wouldn't offer this. You're still going to need to login to Github/email/wherever with your personal password, manage private keys, and stuff like that. Just say no.
If they are sending a dedicated laptop, I'd recommend using dedicated accounts for that client. I don't use personal accounts on my work system even as a full-time employee.
Re: Ask HN: My client want an agent on my laptop. Is this the new normal?
#157I predict that this will be the new normal for a while, until the myriad problems it causes really surface.
As with other backdoors, these will leak important data and ultimately become priority attack vectors to steal or corrupt data.
Of course there's also the worker privacy, but that will always get trampled on until the workers revolt.
Part of selling yourself (whether your mind or your body) is deciding where to draw lines. What will you do, or accept, to get paid?
I won't accept invasive monitoring. Companies like this can look elsewhere (and they'll find people who will happily trade everything for a little money).
Re: Ask HN: My client want an agent on my laptop. Is this the new normal?
#158Do you object outright to spyware, or to the client wanting to run their spyware on your equipment? It sounds like the spyware is non negotiable and I personally wouldn’t have issue with it if the client also provides a laptop on which to run it . The client is free to do whatever the hell they like with their own hardware . What’s objectionable about situations like this is the client wanting to have their spyware c…
And most peoples home network wont be able to support VLAN's and would your employer be more worried about your ISP provided router - hmm must really replace that huawei router on my network.
Here's a five port 802.1Q VLAN switch for $39.99 + tax:
Re: Ask HN: My client want an agent on my laptop. Is this the new normal?
#159Ask for a separate work laptop from them, put it on a different VLAN without access to local resources. Do not login to anything personal on it. That's what I currently do. I also keep it in an office room away from living areas of the house. The VLAN also shuts access to the internet 90 minutes after working hours.
Re: Ask HN: My client want an agent on my laptop. Is this the new normal?
#160Earlier quoted context omitted.
Had a quick look at drata.com. Looks like vendorware. Some manager got hoodwinked into buying the product to justify their existence. Now they have to force everybody to use it to justify the exorbitant price.
> hoodwinked Or they just saw an opportunity :)
Or they got a fat kickback