[ale] OT: Well it is going to hit the list sooner or later.

[Dow Hurst]

I do understand your outrage Mike.  I agree that the higher ups might 
not have agreed on authorization.  However, the guy really doesn't have 
authority on his own to invade the other guy's privacy that way without 
risking his job.  Sure, I believe the higher ups ought to have supported 
the guy, but legally the sysadmin did not have the right to do what he 
did without proper authorization.  If he had done a company wide audit 
and passed it on to his superiors then that might have been different.  
Just focusing in on one person wasn't a great idea on his part. 

Sysadmins do have alot of power and must exercise it with caution, don't 
you think?
Dow


Mike Panetta wrote:

>I am not quite sure how it clouds the issue.  The boss that he spyed on was an obvious
>thief.  He was stealing the companies money by goofing off while being payed to do the
>job he was hired for.  Its obvious to me that the higher ups would not have given the
>sysadmin permission to spy, because they were probably doing the same thing.  The
>sysadmin was trying to save the company money (and thus the state assuming its
>a govt institution) which is the moral obligation of anyone working for a company.  
>He should not have been fired, in fact there should have been an investigation into
>everyone in the company at that point to see where the dead wood was.
>
>I so no clouds here...
>
>Mike
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: Dow Hurst <Dow.Hurst at mindspring.com>
>Sent: Aug 1, 2004 10:33 AM
>To: Atlanta Linux Enthusiasts <ale at ale.org>
>Subject: Re: [ale] OT: Well  it is going to hit the list sooner or later.
>
>Excellent point using SAGE ethics.  This is a situation where the 
>obvious outrage at the guy getting fired clouds the issue.  I'll keep 
>the SAGE ethics in mind and get a CYA letter from someone higher up 
>before pulling a stunt like that guy did.  Sincerely,
>Dow
>
>
>J.M. Taylor wrote:
>
>  
>
>>My interpretation of the SAGE code of ethics is the following: I do not
>>read people's emails, even tho it is within my power.  I do not spy on
>>people, even tho it is within my power and in many cases may prove their
>>misdeeds.  I do not collect data on people's misdeeds even tho these
>>people may be harming me on the job.  I do not make these decisions.  I
>>just run the server.
>>
>>If it is required of me that I do these things, I ask for a signed letter
>>    
>>
>>from a higher-up, or the law enforcement agency or whatever, to prove that
>  
>
>>I was not acting on my own.  It is never right for a systems administrator
>>to give in to his or her baser nature and use their technical knowlege to
>>further a complaint against a coworker, unless s/he has been asked to do
>>this by a superior for legally and ethically correct reasons.
>>
>>And yes, if my boss told me to gather data about someone that I knew was 
>>goofing off all day but wouldn't give me the signed letter, I would refuse 
>>to do it even if it meant my job.  That's how strongly I feel about the 
>>importance of my integrity in what I do.  It's also just CYA -- when the 
>>fit hits the shan and it's my word against my boss's about who ordered 
>>collecting the data....no way am I going to get involved in that.  I'm 
>>not completely stupid.
>>
>>IMNSHO this guy isn't a saint or a martyr.  He did something
>>unethical, and unethical acts are unethical regardless of the motivating
>>reasons.  If you steal from your company and give the money to starving
>>people, it's still stealing.  If all he did was send emails about the
>>boss, maybe he should've taken the time to actually go speak to someone
>>face-to-face.  If he had gotten the go-ahead from a higher-up to do this,
>>then it would've been fine.  It sucks that the boss didn't get fired, but
>>ALDOT was entirely correct in firing the admin.
>>
>>Jenn
>></end>
>>
>>
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>>    
>>
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