Secretly dump DNS cache to text file at shutdown

[nickedname]

Hello, I have a sneeking suspicion that one of my co-workers is using some of the terminals for illegal activities after hours, when no one is around. He is almost certainly using "Private Mode" on his browser, so I would like to see what websites and connections he is using by dumping the contents of the DNS cache to a text file, secretly, on shutdown so I can read them in the mornings. I was thinking of running a BAT file containing "ipconfig /displaydns" and some redirects to run at shutdown. Is this the best solution? Would it be detectable?

 

[Core]

Hello, I have a sneeking suspicion that one of my co-workers is using some of the terminals for illegal activities after hours, when no one is around. He is almost certainly using "Private Mode" on his browser, so I would like to see what websites and connections he is using by dumping the contents of the DNS cache to a text file, secretly, on shutdown so I can read them in the mornings. I was thinking of running a BAT file containing "ipconfig /displaydns" and some redirects to run at shutdown. Is this the best solution? Would it be detectable?

You can use pipe to output into a file and use scheduler to do it frequently. It may pop up & dismiss a cli window though, not sure. I don't fiddle with the Windows cli much at all anymore.

Best solution? No. The best solution is to mind your own business, and the second best is to tell your supervisor about your suspicions. I'm not saying this from some higher moral ground; I am simply suggesting that there is no outcome here that will lead to you being the office hero, au contraire, the office snitch. I am also not too sure as to whether creating and running scripts to monitor the online activities of your co-workers is even legal. It certainly could be interpreted as misappropriation of office IT resources, at best. My advice: leave it well enough alone and live your life.

 

[nickedname]

I get where you're coming from. But actually, this is my business, and my name on the leases, media contracts, etc. This individual has lied to me on previous occasions and I'm not gonna waste time asking him what he is up to. Thank you for the reply regarding my question though. It was somewhat useful. I was thinking of doing it the way you suggested but I was worried about exactly what you wrote: a pop up terminal on every shutdown. If there is another way, I'd love to hear it.

 

[Core]

Yeah, that makes sense. You said "co-worker", not employee, so I thought you were equals. Obviously if this is your company then that's a different ball game entirely.

This link should help you along: http://superuser.com/questions/140047/how-to-run-a-batch-file-without-launching-a-command-window

 

[Digerati]

I would (1) announce the company policy on using company resources for personal uses, (2) announce company policy on being in the workplace after hours, (3)announce company policy on what happens if caught violating (1) and (2), then announce new "network" monitoring and auditing software is in place on your network and that leads me to my next point and that is most routers have logging options so you might check there. By monitoring via your router, it does not matter which computer he uses.