[rhet0rica]

There is a time and place for everything—and you should not assume a business environment is the only possible setting in which colleagues might pass by unattended workstations.

Ideally the prank is pulled in a high-trust, low-stakes environment like a college campus or high school computer lab, before corporate policies are part of one's life.

It is also a rich tradition, from the days of yore, before robust security practices became standard:

• http://catb.org/jargon/html/B/baggy-pantsing.html

• http://catb.org/jargon/html/D/derf.html

• https://www.multicians.org/cookie.html

I would much rather my colleagues be taught this lesson (even if just through a verbal reprimand) than work with someone who is allowed to remain ignorant of the risks of their behaviour.

[Sammi]

Man if you can't trust the guy sitting next to you to pull this prank on you, then you've got serious issues.

[alfiedotwtf]

At the same time, a new hire could actually be a pentester, investigator, or corporate espionage actor. I know people who’s job this was to take over employee computers while the target went to lunch

[Sammi]

The guy who sits next to you regularly...