My friend works for a company which requires her to use Microsoft specific application, she didn’t really want to switch to Win 11 and choose to just use Wine Linux package and install a 2016 version of MS office on her Linux laptop. That’s all well and good, but this company she is working for servers other clients at pretty high up places and she is terrified that she using the pirated version of MS would create a liability for her company as if Microsoft wants to target pirated software, they hunt for organisations rather than individuals.
So, what should she do? Is there a way you can hide the fact that the excel sheet was created on pirated software, is it even possible to tell excel sheets apart which are using pirated software?
PS: If there is a way to destroy all metadata related to the excel sheets, it would be very helpful.
edit: Thanks to everyone who chipped in for an answer, gonna suggest her to either ask her employer to give her the necessary software + hardware and if denied quit. I now realize this is not the norm in any company but hers. Anyways, thanks everyone.
My friend works for a company which requires her to use Microsoft specific application
So the company needs to provide said friend with all the needed software.
Absolutely!
I don’t know for other countries but here in Germany the employer - by law - has to provide the employee with everything the employee needs to do the job he’s hired for.
I boldly assume this is the case in most countries.
In the US, this is generally true if the person is an employee… however if they’re a contractor it’s up to them to provide their own stuff, including health insurance and such. It’s why contractors get paid more, they theoretically have to cover all the other expenses around providing their services.
So, what should she do?
She should ask her company to provide the neccessary tools to do the work.
PS: If there is a way to destroy all metadata related to excel sheets, it would be very helpful.
No, it would look like she is hiding something far worse.
It is an insane suggestion to even concider, it is far, far worse to have zero metadata than to have a bit of odd metadata.
If the sheets are tagged as being crested by a pirated version of excel then she could feign ignorance and pretend she has zero idea of what is going on, if the meta data is gone, she would be known as someone with something to hide.
Also, why the fuck is she editing company documents on her personal computer?
That is by far the main problem.
she didn’t really want to switch to Win 11
On which computer? Her own?
Does not the company provide a PC with the tools needed? If yes, she has no right to decide what goes on it, the company does and she should respect that, doing what you want on a company PC can get you in serious trouble, way more serious than finding out you’re using a pirated version of Office.
If the company expects her to use her own PC, they should at least provide the needed software licenses, Office365 can be used on the web, no need to install anything and it can be used on Linux no problem.
BUT the serious problem remains of having company data on her own PC, the best thing to do in such a case would be creating a VM, encrypting the file system and keeping all company data contained inside the VM.
Tho in such a case I would change company, no serious company today would expect employees to keep company data freely on whatever personal PC, that could lead to data breaches, I would never want to be involved in case like that, tho I live in EU, we have very strict laws about data integrity and privacy, dunno about other countries.
I’m in the EU as well and am working for a company in the USA. They make us use our own computers for work - which includes installing time tracking software.
I am actively trying to get out of the company and do not recommend working for a company that makes you use your own device. Since they are only registered in the USA, I have no legal protection from the EU and my country of residence.
Sorry for the tangent, I just think it’s important for others to see as well.
Fuck. That. Company.
Holy shit dude.
That device monitoring software can go to hell.
Currently trying to leave. I’ve got a side gig but it’s not bringing in enough to leave this job yet.
You said you are ‘in the EU’, as in currently living in the US for said job?
Are you considered an independent contractor? Or an actual employee of the company?
As a US citizen… I would just advise EU citizens to ‘in general’ avoid working for US companies, we have bad employment policies, and our companies think they can just do the same things in other countries. Obviously everyone should choose for themselves; if you think the extra income is worth it, that is your call, but our work culture is awful.
At the very least, if you do decide to work for a US company… keep it remote. Cost of living in the US is really high, work culture is awful, it’s dangerous, and healthcare costs are crazy. Unless your household is making at least $150k USD/year, you’ll be considered poor to middle-class.
I’m living in the EU and work remotely for a US based company.
I took the job as my I was unemployed. My contract came to an end at my previous company and they weren’t renewing any contracts unfortunately.
This job I’m working now pays $15.50 an hour and they are super strict (micromanagement on a whole other level) about what we do during that time. I posted about it here.
Maybe ask the company if they can get you an O365-Account, so you can just use the web version of it or install that as webapp.
Sorry to say, but employees cost so much money in salary, those few bucks for software licenses are just minor.
Never pay for software for your job unless you’re self employed. That’s the employers responsibility.
