Wells Fargo fires a dozen employees accused of 'simulation of keyboard activity'
What specific actions led Wells Fargo to terminate the employment of more than a dozen employees recently?
Wells Fargo recently terminated the employment of more than a dozen employees for "simulation of keyboard activity," according to filings to the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. These employees were found to be faking work by creating an "impression of active work," likely using devices like mouse jigglers that keep their screens active and move their cursors in convincingly random ways. These actions were discovered during a review, leading to the employees' dismissal.
How do devices like mouse jigglers function, and why did their usage increase during the early days of the pandemic?
Mouse jigglers are devices or applications that simulate mouse movement on a computer screen to give the impression of activity and presence. They can be hardware devices that physically move the mouse or software applications that virtually move the cursor. These tools gained popularity during the early days of the pandemic as many employees shifted to remote work and were concerned about being monitored by their employers.
With the rise of remote work, many companies started using employee monitoring software (EMS) to track their employees' activities, such as measuring mouse movements and keyboard activity. This tracking software can also log websites visited and documents opened and closed, and some programs even take random screenshots of employees during the working day. As a response to this increased surveillance, workers began using mouse jigglers to create the illusion of being active on their computers, even when they were away from their desks.
Mouse jigglers can be useful in various scenarios, such as when healthcare workers need to keep their computers awake while talking to patients, IT teams testing software, or students taking notes during a lecture4. However, their popularity also highlights the growing concerns about workplace surveillance and the lack of trust between employers and employees.
What reasons do employees have for using tools such as mouse jigglers, according to management training firm founder Ashley Herd?
According to Ashley Herd, the founder of management training firm Manager Method, employees may use tools like mouse jigglers because they feel the need to meet the unrealistic expectations set by their managers4. These expectations could be a result of managers not trusting their employees to manage their own workload and productivity. This lack of trust can create an environment where employees feel the need to constantly appear active and engaged, even when they might need to step away from their workstations for a brief period.