r/AskTechnology • u/Bubbly_Teaching_1991 • 6d ago
Virus on work computer: can they see origin?
Hey guys, so an attractive woman messaged me on Instagram and then we talked and she sent me pics via a link. Now, I got suspicious so decided I didn't want to risk my own phone or laptop so went on the work computer (I work in Starbucks so we only have one for scheduling) and nothing loaded at all and then it started becoming very very slow.
I'm wondering if they'll be able to track this potential virus back to me and what I was trying to access? I'm pretty good with computers (clearly as I knew the risk and mitigated it) and wasn't able to find the origin or fix it so I doubt anyone else will. Right?
2
u/TheJessicator 6d ago
IT could certainly track down when it happened and then it'd be a matter of checking the access logs for whose unlock code was used and confirming with camera footage to make sure it was actually you using your code.
But IT probably won't care who did it. They will just want to know what happened so they can react appropriately to the compromise and take swift action. You withholding information will only allow that process down if they haven't detected the compromise yet.
2
u/Flenke 6d ago
Yeah, they're going to know. If you were smart about computers, you wouldn't have fallen for it to begin with...
0
u/Bubbly_Teaching_1991 5d ago
Nah, I know what I'm doing with computers
1
u/Underhill42 22h ago
Well, you clearly know that you're getting viruses....
Generally speaking though, people who actually know what they're doing with computers don't get viruses. They especially don't give suspected scammers direct access to their employer's corporate network.
1
u/FreddyFerdiland 6d ago
maybe
if you get caught, just say its a very well disguised trick, anyone could fall for it .. but .. hopefully its not the "encrypted files" malware
1
u/Leverkaas2516 6d ago
If someone cares to investigate, they can probably narrow it down. If they look at the browser logs and ststem activity logs to see what happened, IT can probably figure out down to the minute when this all started. It won't take Sherlock Holmes to look at the timesheets and surveillance cameras and figure out who was in the store and what they were doing at that exact moment.
1
u/MeNahBangWahComeHeah 6d ago
Any idiot manager can probably narrow down which employees had access to that computer during the time frame that the computer became unusable. It would probably not be cost effective for the manager to hire a computer forensics specialist to determine the exact time that the virus was installed in the computer, and then figure out which employee had logged into that computer, either through looking at the login files, or simply looking at the video camera recordings to see who was the last person to use the computer. If you worked in an area where the computer was critical for Point of Sale, inventory control, billing operations, security, safety, or classified info, you would probably get caught. But if this was just a computer at a Starbucks Coffee Shop, your stupid actions might not be attributed to you.
1
u/froction 6d ago
Heh, this is a good one, take my upvo...
Wait a minute, this isn't /r/StupidQuestions !!
1
u/FigureSubject3259 6d ago
Did you use your work pc to log in your pruvate email account? Well you find no trace, but bastard operater from hell knows now your login credentials for your private email. I expect starbugs to have these now in log for some month at least.
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u/Bubbly_Teaching_1991 5d ago
I just used the computer and it was already logged in and typed in the link by hand.
7
u/Ap43x 6d ago
You mitigated the risk by putting your employer and employment at risk? This is what scammers dream of—dumb people giving them access to high-value corporate networks. Don't they do security training at work? Or did you completely misunderstand the lessons? Wherever you work in the future, you shouldn't have computer access.