Wall Street's WhatsApp Secret: Illegal Texting Is Out of Control

Re:Wall Street's WhatsApp Secret: Illegal Texting Is Out of ... by throwaway287391 on Friday March 31, 2017 @02:27AM (#14001579)

Do you honestly think that's a feasible solution? Who in their right mind would work for a company that doesn't allow them to bring their personal phone to work? Unless it were required by law, no company would do that to their white collar employees -- they'd all leave for a company that doesn't treat them like eight year olds. (I feel like this would never be suggested on HN if we were discussing software companies rather than finance.)

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Re:Wall Street's WhatsApp Secret: Illegal Texting Is Out of ... by ForHackernews on Friday March 31, 2017 @03:26AM (#14001798)

The finance industry already has much more onerous security requirements than most software companies. One reason I wouldn't want to work for a financial firm is that they'd never let me have root on my own desktop, or install whatever software I wanted.

The workers put up with it because finance pays gobs and gobs of money. Would you leave your personal phone at home for the right price? I'm sure you [or somebody else equivalently talented to you] would.

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Re:Wall Street's WhatsApp Secret: Illegal Texting Is Out of ... by na85 on Friday March 31, 2017 @07:27AM (#14002715)

>Who in their right mind would work for a company that doesn't allow them to bring their personal phone to work?

Uh, everyone in the military and the defense industry who work in EMSEC zones?

Literally hundreds of thousands of people, if not millions.

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Re:Wall Street's WhatsApp Secret: Illegal Texting Is Out of ... by tedsanders on Friday March 31, 2017 @02:30AM (#14001589)

Many companies with highly confidential information do this. A friend of mine is a programmer at such a company.

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Re:Wall Street's WhatsApp Secret: Illegal Texting Is Out of ... by cm2187 on Friday March 31, 2017 @03:04AM (#14001722)

Mobile phones are banned on trading floors. It is just hard to enforce for the reasons you mention.

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Re:Wall Street's WhatsApp Secret: Illegal Texting Is Out of ... by GenWintergreen on Friday March 31, 2017 @12:12PM (#14005215)

It's kinda a soft ban though, and hard for any MD to enforce when they're the most guilty of it.

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Re:Wall Street's WhatsApp Secret: Illegal Texting Is Out of ... by billpg on Friday March 31, 2017 @07:18AM (#14002680)

They still have trading floors? I thought all trades went electronically these days.

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Re:Wall Street's WhatsApp Secret: Illegal Texting Is Out of ... by cm2187 on Friday March 31, 2017 @08:07AM (#14002891)

Only on some very specific and liquid products (shares, FX, futures, perhaps certain bonds). Most products still trade over the counter (i.e. by phone).

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Re:Wall Street's WhatsApp Secret: Illegal Texting Is Out of ... by 72deluxe on Friday March 31, 2017 @08:06AM (#14002888)

I have zero signal at work due to the building being a huge metal frame and metal mesh on the windows.

This means I cannot SMS anyone. It also means increased productivity as I don't bother looking at my phone to see if anyone has texted me.

I can get WiFi at work and use Internet IM/communication apps but in all seriousness, I am there to work and putting my phone in my pocket on airplane mode is actually far more beneficial than you think.

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Re:Wall Street's WhatsApp Secret: Illegal Texting Is Out of ... by codedokode on Friday March 31, 2017 @03:48AM (#14001868)

That could also make employees more productive.

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Re:Wall Street's WhatsApp Secret: Illegal Texting Is Out of ... by ci5er on Friday March 31, 2017 @05:33PM (#14008506)

Could?

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Re:Wall Street's WhatsApp Secret: Illegal Texting Is Out of ... by lz400 on Friday March 31, 2017 @03:49AM (#14001872)

It's done regularly in trading floors

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