Client Accuses Engineer Of Keeping Confidential File, Panics When He Suggests Involving SecOps

A few days ago, we told you about Ethel Caterham, a British supercentenarian who is officially recognized as the oldest living person on the planet. Mrs. Caterham, in particular, said that one of the secrets of her longevity is never arguing with anyone, just listening and doing what she likes.

Excellent advice, by the way! We don’t know how long the user u/barthem, the author of today’s story, is destined to live, but they obviously have similar life principles. At least, when faced with a passive-aggressive scheduling manager from the client’s side, they simply complied maliciously – and it worked! As almost always…

More info: Reddit

The author of the post works as an engineer in a company, and they were recently added to a project that had to start soon

Image credits: Drazen Zigic / Freepik (not the actual photo)

A few days later, the author received a ZIP archive with the papers regarding the project, and skimmed through it briefly

Image credits: barthem

Image credits: chuttersnap / Freepik (not the actual photo)

Then the scheduling manager from the client’s side emailed asking to delete the archive due to some confidential information in it

Image credits: barthem

Image credits: freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)

The engineer did so, but then the manager called them and demanded ‘guarantees’ that the archive had been deleted

Image credits: barthem

Image credits: freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)

The manager spoke in a passive-aggressive voice, so the author told her they don’t mind reporting it to the SecOps teams in both companies

Image credits: barthem

The woman’s tone changed immediately and she then told she actually believes the author and considers the issue solved

So, the Original Poster (OP) works as an engineer in a big company, and they were recently transferred to a new project that is supposed to start soon. In anticipation of the start of work on the project, the team lead sent them a large ZIP archive with materials and working documents, and the author, of course, skimmed through it. And then they got back to their work routine.

A couple of days later, the external company’s scheduling manager wrote to them and demanded that they delete the archive because it apparently contained some confidential information of that company. Well, the original poster did so, but it turns out that was only the beginning of the whole story.

That same manager now called the author and, in a typical passive-aggressive manner, demanded guarantees that the files with confidential information were really deleted. According to this persistent lady, she cannot trust only the author’s word. Well, they could start arguing and get dramatic, but the OP chose a different path.

They completely agreed with the interlocutor and offered to immediately bring everything to the attention of the Security Operations team in both companies. Of course, this would have launched a complex bureaucratic machine with a lot of paperwork, and someone in the other company could’ve been thrown under the bus.

Is it any wonder that upon hearing this idea, the lady immediately changed her anger to mercy, and said that she actually fully believed and trusted the OP, so she considered the issue completely solved?

Image credits: freepik / Freepik (not the actual photo)

“From a psychological point of view, this person did everything right,” says Irina Matveeva, a psychologist and certified NLP specialist, whom Bored Panda asked for a comment here. “Obviously, they were not guilty of anything in this case, and completely followed the manager’s request when the letter arrived demanding that the archive be deleted.”

“And, by and large, this engineer is absolutely not obliged to delve into what situation arose in another company, as a result of which this scheduling manager began to worry about the consequences of her own mistake. So, in fact, they didn’t risk anything in the event of bringing the report to SecOps. Except, of course, possible red tape.”

“As we can see, this woman’s reaction speaks for itself – she initially tried to scare the interlocutor, and when that didn’t work and there was a risk that she herself would be checked, she immediately changed the tone of the conversation. An excellent and very clear example of verbal communication in a conflict situation,” Irina concludes.

People in the comments also praised the OP for her witty way of dealing with such a flow of insults, and noted that this can be done in any situation when the offender threatens to call the police or look at security camera footage (if, of course, you’re 100% sure that you are right). “This is my favorite kind of [malicious compliance] and the kind I practice myself,” someone added.

So what do you, our dear readers, think about this story? Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below this post.

People in the comments mostly praised the author for finding such a witty and reasonable way to cope with the situation

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