Workplace Sabotage: A Cry for Help in a Toxic Environment
In today’s digital age, we expect our workplaces to be secure and efficient, but what happens when that security is shattered from within? For the past year, my office—a law firm, no less—has been plagued by mysterious phone hacks that have led us to suspect foul play by a fellow employee. This troubling situation has escalated to the point where I feel like I’m living in a real-life version of Clue, and I am desperately seeking input from anyone who can shed light on this perplexing situation.
The Issues Unfold
Our office relies on antiquated telephones manufactured by Comdial, which has since transitioned to the brand Zeracom. Currently, we utilize six lines through AT&T, but a troubling pattern has emerged: the calls meant for us are being diverted almost daily to an unknown dating service. In fact, today alone, we experienced this diversion not once, but four times.
Forcing us to mechanically reverse the forwarding—by dialing specific codes—has become a tiresome routine. These calls consist of nothing but recorded messages accompanied by languorous music, which raises the question: is there even a legitimate business behind it, or is this simply a prank?
Insights from Experts
Frustration has mounted as ten different professionals, from AT&T representatives to the creators of our phone system, have all echoed a singular sentiment: this level of manipulation could only occur from within the office. However, despite presenting this information to our leadership, they remain in denial. Their solution? Advising us to switch our phone provider entirely. Unfortunately, with an existing contract in place, this is not a viable option, and the underlying issue of internal sabotage persists, particularly as the suspected culprit holds a position that grants her access to sensitive information, including check deposits.
As I type this, I share this burden with my colleague—my mother, who also happens to be our office accountant. Together, we have been vigilant, yet we are acutely aware of the fact that caller ID is absent from our setup, making tracking incoming calls nearly impossible. The unreliable *69 feature has only added to our woes, providing us with outdated information that hinders our investigation. We have even requested AT&T to disable the call forwarding feature, yet the strange occurrences stubbornly persist.
The Prime Suspect
Through careful observation, it has become clear that we have a prime suspect on our hands: a disgrunt
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