對于許多上班族來說,上班時間是不能使用MSN或QQ這類網絡聊天工具的。當然,為了傳輸文件需要、為了與外部交換信息而使用這些即時通訊工具,通常還是被允許的。但是隨著這些聊天工具在辦公時間內的使用頻率越來越高,老板們也越來越頭疼。究竟員工們有多少時間是用于工作?又有多少時間是在閑聊?不得而知。于是,有些老板竟安裝起聊天監控軟件來,不僅把員工們的聊天記錄看個一清二楚,甚至連敲擊鍵盤的順序都一目了然。這種監控軟件讓老板與員工站到了天平的兩端,員工要求的隱私與老板要求的生產力,究竟孰輕孰重?讀者朋友,你又是怎么看的呢?歡迎來信與我們分享!
Stephanie: ①What is the deal with all the upgrades on the office computers?
John: I heard they are installing monitoring software.
Stephanie: Really? Where did you hear that?
John: ②Through the grapevine. Yeah, ③they wanna crack down on people chatting to their friends or using their time unproductively.
Stephanie: How does it work? I mean, how much can
they see?
John: Well, they haven’t made an official announcement yet, so I’m not sure on all the specifics or how strict they will be, but from what I’ve heard, they can see all ingoing and outgoing emails, check what websites you visit, track downloads and 1)peer to peer file transfers…
Stephanie: Wow, that’s pretty 2)invasive.
John: Some software even goes as far as 3)keystroke recording, so they can track all of the keystrokes and monitor all of the information input through the keyboard.
Stephanie: Well, that sounds like they are worried about more than just people chatting on MSN or Facebook.
John: I guess they wanna make sure everyone is following correct 4)protocol. It’s also a way to minimize the risk of viruses.
Stephanie: What about the privacy issue? Are they allowed to do this?
John: ④In the eyes of the law, we have no right to privacy as we are using company computers. However, I know that all employees are legally 5)entitled to have their private and family lives respected.
Stephanie: Well, that’s one bit of good news, I guess. ⑤I just don’t want to feel like I’m always looking over my shoulder.
史蒂芬妮:辦公室的電腦升級是怎么回事?
約翰:我聽說他們在安裝監控軟件。
史蒂芬妮:真的?你從哪兒聽來的?
約翰:當然通過小道消息啦。嗯,他們想要對那些在工作時間不好好工作或與朋友閑聊的人嚴加懲處。
史蒂芬妮:那怎么操作呢?我是說,他們能看到多少內容?
約翰:呃,他們還沒發出正式的通告,所以我也不清楚細節,也不知道他們究竟會有多嚴厲。不過就我聽說的,他們能看到所有接收及發送的郵件內容,能查到你所上的任何網頁,能檢測到下載行為以及P2P文件傳輸……
史蒂芬妮:哇,那簡直是侵權了。
約翰:還有一些軟件甚至能細致到你的按鍵記錄,因此他們能根據你的按鍵,監控你所有通過鍵盤輸入的信息。
史蒂芬妮:呃,聽起來他們擔心的不只是大家在MSN或Facebook上聊
天啊。
約翰:我猜他們是想確保所有人都遵守正確的操作程序吧。這也是一個減少病毒入侵風險的辦法。
史蒂芬妮:那我們的隱私呢?他們有權利這么做嗎?
約翰:從法律的角度來看,我們使用的是公司的電腦,也就沒有什么所謂的隱私權了。但是不管怎么說,我知道所有員工的隱私和家庭生活在法律上都應該得到尊重。
史蒂芬妮:那真是不幸中的大幸了,我想。我就是不喜歡總要小心提防別人的感覺。

Smart Sentences
① What is the deal with all the upgrades on the office
computers? 辦公室的電腦升級是怎么回事?
What is the deal? = What’s happening?
what is the deal: used to ask about happenings with sth.(用以詢問正在發生的事情)。例如:
What is the deal with all the noises upstairs?
樓上的聲音是怎么回事?
② Through the grapevine. 當然通過小道消息啦。
the grapevine: casual conversation, or informal channels, usually used when not wanting to name the source(傳聞,聽說,通常強調非官方,用于不想明說消息來源)。例如:
I’ve heard on the grapevine that Frank might be demoted because of the accident.
我聽說弗蘭克可能會因為那次事故被降職。
③ They wanna crack down on people… 他們想要對那些……人嚴加懲罰。
crack down on sth./sb.: strong action to enforce rules or laws(對某事或某人采取嚴厲措施)。例如:
Cracking down on online stock trading during working hours will be the priority next month.
下個月的重點是嚴打上班時間進行網上炒股的行為。
④ in the eyes of the law 從法律的角度來看
in the eyes of: indicates that what’s said is sb.’s opinion and that other people might think differently(在……看來)。例如:
In the eyes of Mr. Ford, his team was the best in the department.
在福特先生眼里,他的小組是部門里最優秀的。
⑤ I just don’t want to feel like I’m always looking over my shoulder. 我就是不喜歡總要小心提防別人的感覺。
look over one’s shoulder: feel anxious all the time about what sb. may do to oneself(小心提防)。例如:
As long as Florence works here, we all need to look over our shoulders and be prepared for what she might do.
只要佛羅倫斯在這里干一天,我們都要小心提防著她的行為。