Mood:  a-ok

I had a ticket the other day that I would have let go with just a warning, but the user decided to be an ass.  The guy had a personal laptop plugged directly into the company network...which is a major violation of company security policy.  Anyway, this kind of thing happens a couple of times a month...at least I usually have a couple a month.

Anyway...I usually tell the user that it is a violation of policy and they shouldn't do it any more...most of them play dumb (I'm giving them the benefit of the doubt on this one).  After I tell them that they shouldn't be connected and that I can't continue the call knowing what I now know...they move on with their lives.  Not so with this guy...after I told him that it was against security policy to do what he was doing...he dangerously tells me "Wrong!"  To which I replied "Sorry, not wrong."

Then this company gem rolls over on his boss by not only telling me that she knew he was doing it...but gave me her name.  I inform him again that not only do we not support home computers beyond basic troubleshooting (and even then mostly for VPN)...but I can't work with him if he is going to have it plugged in.

He tells me that his computer is registered to be on the network.  Which doesn't really mean much, and I tell him that even a home computer that is connecting through VPN has to be registered...he pulls out the "what part of my computer being registered didn't you understand?"

Anyone that knows me...can probably guess how it went from there.  Well...not this time...I didn't respond right away, took a deep breath and then told him that apparently he didn't understand what I said.  Then he tells me that he can't waste any more time with me, and that he calls up all the time to get help.  I calmly asked him if he ever told the other help desk consultants that he was on a personal system....to which he didn't respond.  That means "no" for those of you scoring at home.

Anyway, communication was pretty much dropped at this point so I closed out his ticket...then reported him and his boss to my boss for the security violation.  Like I said before, normally I'd just give them the warning and let it slide...but if they want to tangle with me...I have more power than they do...I also have a recorded call to back me up.

The best part of the whole story??  The idiot works in my building...I may need to run by his cube in the next couple of days and see if he's gone.  If not I'll probably just start laughing and keep walking.