Home workers’ ‘mouse jigglers’ help fool bosses

SEARCHES and sales for mouse movers which let staff discretely slip away from their desks are on the rise as home workers look for tactics to stay active online.

Google Trends data reveals that global searches for a product dubbed the “mouse jiggler”, a device which automatically moves a mouse cursor, spiked at the end of last month as staff looked to escape scrutiny from employers.

A JP Morgan executive last week described using the contraption to evade a “Big Brother” tool which is allegedly used by the bank to monitor staff activities.

Companies which make mouse movers have noted a spike in sales. Carl Howell, who sells the products from the UK via his website Mouse Jiggler, said he sold more than 1,000 of the devices in May which is a record high. On ebay, his sales rose 11.5pc last month compared to April. “We are very pro- working from home and our thousands of customers around the world feel it is the best way to work,” he said, arguing that the products are not about evading Big Brother employers.

Last year a Tiktok video about home working from a user named Leah went viral on social media after she recommended that people buy a mouse mover so that they look like they are always online.

A senior banking executive said they are not worried about people trying to look more active than they are because “people are meas- ured on their results, not by their use of a computer”.

However, there are now multiple brands selling these products on Amazon, ebay and Etsy.

One reviewer on Amazon wrote in December: “Smashing. Stops teams grassing me up every time I go for a p---”.