Sophos extends application control to block computer games

Sophos will give companies the ability to control and block top-selling computer games, including The Sims 2 (EA Games), Fifa 07 (EA Sports) and Football Manager 2007 (Sega), from January next year. This will come as welcome news to system administrators who want to stop employees installing and playing computer games on company PCs and laptops, as this behaviour wastes valuable IT management resources and can severely impact on overall business productivity.

In addition to providing system administrators with the power to block popular games from 15 major games publishers, including Eidos Interactive, SEGA and Electronic Arts, Sophos Application Control will also be extended over time to control employees’ access to games by other developers.

“PC games will be extremely popular as Christmas presents this year and some people may become so hooked that they won’t think twice about installing them on their work PCs or laptops,” said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos. “Many games are readily accessible and easy to hide, meaning some employees will have no qualms about playing several times a day. System administrators have voiced their opinion loud and clear: they are fed up of workers installing unauthorised programs and cyberslacking. More man hours have probably been spent playing computer games in the office than it took to build the Panama Canal.”