With any security protocols implemented, there’s always going to be bad actors taking it as a challenge. There’s always a risk in taking on new employees and giving them access to information systems within companies. They can sign waivers and agreements promising to be honest and protect company trade secrets, but ultimately it is an honor code arrangement. You won’t believe some of the ways people have abused online database systems.

Four years ago, I worked at a call center that did tech support for a cable company and we heard the story of an elderly woman who worked the phones. You couldn’t have pens, paper, cellphones, or books with you on the call center floor (for obvious reasons) but you could bring along your knitting or crocheting to do while you talked customers through troubleshooting. This woman, honest-to-God, recorded credit and debit card numbers with her knitting stitches. After all, you wouldn’t suspect a sweet old grandmother of credit card fraud!

You need to be careful when inputting data into computers, especially in public settings. Social engineering techniques don’t just happen online, they happen in your physical surroundings. Always be wary of people standing behind you while you’re typing personal information into a computer. Shoulder surfing involves someone looking over a person’s shoulder as they’re inputting information and remembering email addresses, names, even keystrokes for passwords. This is why offices have bullpens and dividers and why computers are positioned in ways that aren’t easily viewable by passersby. Many business environments have strict rules against employees having cellphones on the workplace floor. Yes, it’s tedious and sometimes inconvenient, but the rules exist because people have done illegal things, like taking photos of credit cards and using skimmers. Maybe the business implements these rules to protect themselves from liability more than protecting their employees, but it’s better than nothing.