British spies tell companies to monitor workers online

A British intelligence agency is advising businesses to monitor their workers’ activity online in order to prevent cyberattacks.

GCHQ, the U.K.’s electronic surveillance agency, released a series of recommendations to the private sector as part of a broad campaign to fend off hackers.

{mosads}The guidance document — 10 Steps to Cyber Security — was reported late Monday by the Telegraph and issued in conjunction with several other government offices. 

Firms are urged to “monitor all user activity” on their networks and ensure that they can “identify” any staff member that might be involved in malicious activity, the paper reported.

GCHQ also urged businesses to consider reclaiming company-issued mobile phones and memory sticks and to limit workers’ Internet browsing to certain trusted WiFi networks.

The guidance, sure to be controversial with privacy advocates, highlights growing concerns that hackers could paralyze certain companies or industries by taking advantage of employees’ devices.

Groundbreaking disclosures by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden have also signaled the risk of workers copying sensitive data and releasing it to the public from their own devices.

GCHQ also warned that private sector employees could be subject to blackmail.

“A significant change in an employee’s personal situation could make them vulnerable to coercion and they may release personal or sensitive commercial information to others,” the guidance stated, according to the Telegraph.