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ActivTrak Changelog

What's new in ActivTrak 8.3.3

Jan 22, 2024
  • New: URL capture when running websites as apps on Safari (Sonoma), Chrome, and Edge
  • Enhanced: Security
  • Fixed: Performance issue on a small number of machines causing the Agent to stop reporting activities

New in ActivTrak 8.3 (Nov 21, 2023)

  • For Agents not requiring screen recording permission, the prompt can now be
  • optionally disabled at install time.
  • Added support for Arc Browser.
  • Enhanced security.
  • Fixed the issue capturing URL on Chrome while searching page.

New in ActivTrak 8.2.18 Agent (Jul 24, 2023)

  • Admins on a paid subscription with access to screenshots can now select
  • individual or multiple screenshots to delete at once. This strengthens security and
  • reduces the risk of exposing sensitive information.
  • A new Navigation Favorites feature to access most-used reports, dashboards, and
  • pages.

New in ActivTrak 8.2.16 Agent (Feb 2, 2023)

  • This new Agent version will automatically detect mouse mover applications, or "mouse jigglers," that fake mouse movements to mimic active, productive digital work.
  • If one of these applications is detected, a new Activity Log (Live Reports > Activity Log) entry will be created with the title of ‘POTENTIAL FALSE ACTIVITY’ and the executable name of the mouse jiggler application will be included in the description.
  • The new Activity Log entries are specific to the user and application, so Admins can take targeted action. Admins can set up Alarms filtering on ‘POTENTIAL FALSE ACTIVITY’ to proactively notify them of detected mouse jigglers and classify these apps to ‘IGNORE’.
  • This Activity Log entry builds on a macOS Agent 8.2.15 feature that automatically detects the fake movements themselves – from both software and hardware-based mouse jigglers – and switches logging from ‘ACTIVE’ to ‘PASSIVE’.

New in ActivTrak 8.2.15 Agent (Dec 6, 2022)

  • Guided Account Setup, a new feature that enables you to customize the ActivTrak app, is now available in your account via the Role Access page.

New in ActivTrak 8.2.14 Agent (Sep 12, 2022)

  • Improved Location Insights for devices on VPN (to support an upcoming Premium feature).
  • Several bug fixes.

New in ActivTrak 8.2.11 Agent (May 19, 2022)

  • We are pleased to announce the release of our latest macOS Agent, version 8.2.11. This latest version of the macOS ActivTrak Agent incorporates several prominent bug fixes and stability improvements, including:
  • More frequent reporting of the Agent machine public IP address to better support cohort and hybrid work analysis.
  • No longer reflecting an employee with activity on the computer lock screen as active until they have logged in to the machine.
  • Other performance enhancements.

New in ActivTrak 8.2.4-6.16 Agent (Mar 16, 2022)

  • Enhanced Executive Summary Dashboard provides Executives with a 30,000-foot view of productivity and utilization trends across their organization, helping them identify teams that are doing well and where support is needed.

New in ActivTrak 8.2.4 Agent (Oct 8, 2021)

  • Ability to identify and log activity from an edge use case on macOS where two user accounts on one machine share the same display name.
  • Ability to detect user activity through interactive and remote user sessions.
  • Fixed a bug where some kinds of alarms could break alarm detection functionality.

New in ActivTrak 8.2.3 Agent (Jun 30, 2021)

  • The macOS Agent 8.2.3 includes a fix to properly install the Firefox Chrome Assist Extension during agent installation.

New in ActivTrak 8.2 Agent (Mar 23, 2021)

  • The ActivTrak 8.2 macOS agent provides native support for Apple M1 devices and Intel-based Macs. It also includes auto-upgrade functionality that will allow future macOS agent releases to automatically upgrade to the newer versions and contains security enhancements.
  • Native Apple Silicon Support:
  • The macOS 8.2 agent is now deployed as a package that contains binaries to allow native support for Apple M1 and Intel-based Macs. Administrators looking to deploy the agent to Macs via MDM solutions can now do so without having to ensure Rosetta2 is installed on M1 Macs.
  • Auto Upgrade:
  • Included in the 8.2 release is an auto-upgrade feature for silent, interaction-free update functionality. This feature allows future versions of the Mac agent to automatically upgrade from 8.2 to the newer versions. Existing macOS agents will not automatically upgrade to the 8.2 Agent due to the required end-user approval of macOS Accessibility permissions.

New in ActivTrak 8.1 Agent (Dec 22, 2020)

  • ActivTrak’s Mac Agent 8.1 includes a simpler installation process, expanded browser support, improved activity detection, and several improvements to manage and troubleshoot agents.
  • Improved Installation / Upgrade Experience:
  • For computers with a previous version of the Mac Agent, the new installation wizard will allow the user to choose between the options to upgrade vs uninstall, simplifying the process.
  • Expanded Browser Support and Activity tracking:
  • Mac Agent 8.1 improves browser support by expanding on the browsers’ recognized and any applications reporting website activities. All Chromium Browsers are now supported including Edge, Brave and AVG.
  • In addition, we have optimized the activity monitoring features of the agent to allow for improvements to tracking for passive, passive locked and scheduling.
  • Logging Improvements:
  • Logging has been available within our agents to allow for tracking down issues when they surface. In addition, the agent supports remote logging of the agent to allow for fast troubleshooting turnaround by our support team.
  • Agent Diagnostics:
  • With the introduction of 8.1, our support team now has access to several ‘heartbeat’ health checks to remotely verify the agents are working as designed and sending data accurately.
  • Stability Fixes:
  • Mac Agent 8.1 has been thoroughly tested both internally and externally with a number of our customers to ensure it addresses a number of issues identified in prior versions related to stability and passive time over-reporting.

New in ActivTrak 4.6 Web App (Oct 5, 2020)

  • Team Viewer role that enables users to see group-level & individual
  • reports for their teams
  • Team Pulse Group view that shows groups' availability & productivity
  • Data Connect customers get access to pre-built report templates for Google Data
  • Studio and pre-built Power BI reports for Microsoft Teams

New in ActivTrak 3.61 Web App (Jun 17, 2020)

  • ActivTrak’s latest release includes a few enhancements and minor bug fixes. This release includes the ability for admins to limit date options within the filters and improvements to the single day graph within the Productivity report.
  • Limiting Date Options within Filters:
  • With release 3.61, ActivTrak Administrators can configure which date filter options are available for users to select when running reports. Limiting the filter options to shorter date ranges can be helpful to ensure users focus on the appropriate analysis time frames and ensure reports complete as quickly as possible. Administrators can apply these settings by role (administrators vs users).
  • Single Day Graph Improvement:
  • Before this release, the data presented in the Single Day Report of the Productivity Dashboard was inconsistent. This is because within a 5 min block, if there was a mix of productive, unproductive and passive time, the Single Day Graph displayed the 5-min block as the largest of productive or unproductive. Only if the 5-min block has all passive time, the 5-min block will be marked as passive. This logic caused confusion when trying to compare the information against the Productivity Report.
  • With 3.61, we have changed the logic in the Single Day report to give equal footing to productive, unproductive and passive time. For each 5-min block, we mark the block as productive, unproductive or passive based on the larger of the three within that 5-min block. Strict mode logic has not changed with this release (i.e. 5-min blocks with any unproductive time, will be marked as unproductive).

New in ActivTrak 3.53 Web App (May 1, 2020)

  • With the release of 3.53, Data Connect customers now have access to pre-built Power BI report templates to allow customers to easily leverage key insights via BI Data Visualization tools. These new templates include pre-built reports similar to Tableau dashboards and reports to analyze workforce Application Usage & Activity, Productivity, Collaboration, Knowledge Management, and Compliance.
  • Take a look at the new Data Connect reporting capabilities within the app by navigating to Reports > Data Connect > Power BI.
  • Screen_Shot_2020-04-22_at_6.31.45_PM.png
  • In addition, we have been iteratively improving our Data Connect sync performance and will continue to improve this system and process to improve load time and other sporadic issues.

New in ActivTrak 3.52.7 Web App (Apr 22, 2020)

  • The release of 3.52.7 includes a number of minor adjustments and bug fixes to improve ActivTrak’s customer experience and data accuracy. The following changes have been released:
  • Classification is now available for use within mobile websites on phones and tablets.
  • Google multifactor authentication is now available for new admins added to the application
  • Group Alarms are now identified as such with the Alarms list.
  • Accounts where the billing is handed by a Partner or MSP will no longer have access to checkout or licensing numbers.
  • Bug Fixes:
  • Corrected an issue on Chrome in Windows 10 where the Working Hours report was inadvertently cut off
  • Corrected an issue where Real-Time was showing the wrong
  • Fixed a bug to ensure Real-time refreshes at the correct interval.
  • Fixed a bug to ensure Alarms are only saved with conditions.
  • Corrected an issue within Classification within the Details popup were the users were brought back to the first activity in lieu of continuing through classifying activities.

New in ActivTrak 3.52 Web App (Apr 1, 2020)

  • Productivity & Category: Assigning a category or productivity status is no longer available within the Top Websites and Top Applications. Users are instead brought to the new Classification page to assign productivity.
  • Group Search: Users can now search for members to groups within the Settings > Group page.
  • Cancelled Exports: Cancelled data exports are now logged within the Security Audit Log
  • Select All Columns: When selecting columns to display within reports, users now have the option to select all columns at once.
  • Video Pre-Recording: We have updated the messaging surrounding pre-recording videos to ensure users do not unintentionally turn on this data heavy feature.
  • Bug fixes:
  • Fixed a bug to ensure computer filters work within Real-Time
  • Fixed a bug that prevented IE11 users from loading the app

New in ActivTrak 3.51 Web App (Feb 28, 2020)

  • ActivTrak’s latest release includes changes to our Raw Data Access (RDA) feature. In addition to changing the name of RDA to Data Connect, we have improved how customers access ActivTrak data from their Google BigQuery account.
  • Data Connect now includes pre-built report templates to allow customers to easily leverage key insights via BI Data Visualization and Reporting tools. These new templates include pre-built reports to analyze workforce Application Usage & Activity, productivity, collaboration, knowledge management, and compliance.
  • Take a look at the new Data Connect report capabilities within app by navigating to Reports > Data Connect.

New in ActivTrak 3.50 Web App (Feb 23, 2020)

  • ActivTrak has migrated subscription management tools to allow for smoother invoicing and payment management. There are no new features included in this release. Customers should be aware there will be a new link to your account management page included in your invoicing emails.
  • Please note the following changes:
  • ACH payments: ActivTrak’s online checkout no longer accepts ACH payment methods. We still accept ACH payments via our Sales team. Please contact our sales team at [email protected] or call us at 1-888-907-0301 with questions, to make a purchase or make changes to your current subscription.
  • Internet Explorer 11: ActivTrak’s online checkout no longer supports the IE11 browser. If you are using IE 11, please switch browsers to one of our supported browsers or contact our sales team at [email protected] or call us at 1-888-907-0301.

New in ActivTrak 3.49 Web App (Feb 16, 2020)

  • ActivTrak’s latest release includes several changes to how we display user time spent away from their computers and minor tweaks to how groups work. Customers rely on ActivTrak for better visibility into their user activities throughout the workday as well as the time they are away from their computers. This latest release renames that time away from the computer from Idle time to Passive time.
  • Idle Time is Now Passive Time:
  • Prior to 3.49, users who are not actively typing or clicking on their computer were shown as Idle. With this latest release, we have renamed Idle to Passive to better convey the message that time away from the computer does not mean the user sitting around being idle. Throughout the workday users have many tasks that do not involve using their keyboard or mouse - for example collaborating with a colleague, watching a training video, attending a meeting, or speaking with a customer on the phone. This work is not idle and now time away from the keyboard and mouse are labeled passive.
  • This name change to Passive is now evident throughout all the reports and data available in exports and with Raw Data Access. All mentions of Passive time within the Activity Log, Alarm Log, and Real Time are displayed italicized and gray. This design allows for focus on the activities users are taking and not on the system events or time away from the computer.
  • In addition to renaming Idle to Passive, we have removed showing Idle Locked from reports and data exports. Previously, Idle Locked was reported without distinction from Idle time (bright yellow throughout all reports and within exports). Users who do not turn off their computers daily previously had large blocks of yellow idle time showing up from the end of one day all the way to the start of the next. Our customers found this confusing and just not helpful, so we have removed it. Now Idle Locked will show just the same as if the computer is in Sleep mode or off completely.
  • Disable AD Groups:
  • With the latest release, customers who use Active Directory to manage their employees now have more options for how groups are used with ActivTrak. Many customers use Active Directory for the ease of deploying Windows Agents to their employees’ computers. However, often times the configuration of AD groups do not align with how they want to analyze employee behavior data.
  • With the release of ActivTrak 3.49, admins can now disable the AD groups. Disabling the AD groups will prevent those misaligned groups from appearing within ActivTrak filters or reports. This allows the admins to focus on the groups that do align with how they like to analyze the rich employee behavior data available in ActivTrak. To disable AD groups, go to Settings> Groups and toggle the Enable Active Directory Groups to off.

New in ActivTrak 3.48 Web App (Jan 28, 2020)

  • ActivTrak’s latest release includes enhanced external notifications allowing for easy to use and read alarm notifications within Slack, Microsoft Teams or any custom webhook of your choosing. In addition, we have fixed X bugs to improve the usability of the app.
  • Enhanced External Notifications:
  • For each alarm, users now have the opportunity to send external notifications in addition to emails. These external notifications extend the previous feature of webhook notifications by making it easier to send notifications to the two popular messaging tools - Slack and Microsoft Teams.
  • When configuring an alarm, you can now select Slack, Microsoft Teams or enter a custom webhook url. When selecting Slack or Microsoft Teams you will enter your company’s custom chat webhook urls to allow for alarm notifications to appear within a messaging app channel. This notification will include all the pertinent alarm information such as Alarm Name with a link back to the alarm log, Time and date alarm fired, User and computer who fired alarm, and details on the app or website visited.
  • Minor Updates:
  • Report loading has been reengineered to improve report loading speed.
  • Real-time pause: The real-time feature screens exposes what employees screens for viewing exactly what they are working on at any given time and it refreshes every few seconds. This feature now includes a toggle to pause the refresh allowing accounts with a significant number of employees the ability to view all screens prior to the refresh.
  • Video Configuration Link: Within the video history page, users now have a link back to the configuration of video alarms.
  • The list of websites within the Blocking feature now includes pagination to improve functionality when a large number of websites are blocked.
  • Real-time Settings page has been renamed to Configuration.
  • Bug fixes including:
  • Fixed an issue within the Top Websites report where the duration listed was incorrect when filtered for undefined productivity assignment.
  • Fixed issues with Filters where the date range selection was not operating correctly/
  • Fixed issues across reports to allow for copying a website's URL correctly.

New in ActivTrak 7.0.1 Agent (Jan 27, 2020)

  • The new 7.0.1 Mac Agent fully complies with Apple’s Catalina OS (MacOS v10.15) notarization requirements, which are slated to come into effect sometime in January 2020. In anticipation of the upcoming change, ActivTrak’s Mac Agent was updated and certified to meet Catalina’s strict notarization ahead of schedule preventing end-users from receiving any warning messages on their computers.
  • Along with stricter notarization, Apple is now informing end users the first time an application takes a screenshot. To prevent disruption, ActivTrak’s new Mac Agent will automatically take a screenshot immediately upon installation so that Apple’s notification is shown to the administrator installing the agent and not the end user.
  • Please note: The Mac Agent installer package should not be renamed. Renaming this installer package will prevent the Mac Agent from successfully installing. Additionally, if your admin has saved the previous installer package to facilitate deployments, then they will need to download this new installer package.

New in ActivTrak 3.47 Web App (Dec 19, 2019)

  • This release is all about enhancements to the popular features including eight new enhanced alarms and adjusting the historical classification for websites with differing protocols. In addition, we’ve made a few minor UI adjustments and fixed minor bugs.
  • New Enhanced Alarms:
  • With the release of 3.47 we have added eight new alarms to your alarm configuration page (note: none are enabled). These new alarms are based on best practices and sourced from alarms customers have enabled and found success. You’ll see alarms highlighting all three alarm types: Activity, USB, and Security Alarms. We have pre-populated the notification messages to make it easy for you to turn on notifications, add the names of users to receive the notifications, and respond quickly. To learn more about these alarms and how to enable them, see the alarms page in the Help Center.
  • We found the older default alarms were not as helpful as the new enhanced alarms and have removed those from customers who did not have them enabled.
  • Normalizing Historic Website Entries:
  • A while back we optimized how the website data is treated for category and productivity classifications. Previously, sister websites with differing protocol such as http://activtrak.com or https://activtrak.com were treated as two distinct websites. These distinct websites needed to be classified separately and reported separately. After that change, all websites going forward are normalized and sister sites are treated the same and only need to be classified once.
  • With the release of 3.47, we have normalized the historical data of sister websites. In addition, for classified sites, we have assigned the category/productivity from ‘sister’ sites when available. This will clean up your reporting and reduce the number of websites that need classification.
  • Minor Updates:
  • Working Hours report now exports the time columns (Total Time, Active Time, Productive, Unproductive, Undefined, Idle) in the hours:minutes:seconds format in addition to the total seconds format.
  • Groups’ selection within Access page: We have made a minor update how users assign viewable groups to users with app access. The UX of selecting a group is now consistent with the user experience of selecting a group throughout the app.

New in ActivTrak 3.46 Web App (Dec 13, 2019)

  • Global Filters:
  • We enhanced the custom date filtering functionality to improve response time for reports with large amount of history. With this release, results will only be returned when both the first and last dates have been selected. In addition, we have updated how users enter custom dates by creating a new calendar picker that is faster and easier to select the first and last dates.
  • Working Hours Report Configuration:
  • We continue to update our newest and very popular Working Hours report. We have now added a column displaying the users Total Time to augment the data previously available. Similar to other data reports, users can now select which columns are shown within the UI to allow focus on the important data needed for analysis.
  • Screenshot Redaction Information Types:
  • We have made a minor change in how redaction information types are made available to customers who have the Screenshot Redaction option. When new redaction info types are available, these options are now seamlessly presented to the users allowing for more flexibility and protection of sensitive data.

New in ActivTrak 7.0.0.0 Agent (Dec 13, 2019)

  • Catalina Support:
  • ActivTrak Agent 7.0 now supports the latest macOS version 10.15 Catalina. Catalina includes additional security measures and, in particular, notifications to users when an application takes a screenshot. To reduce the chance that this macOS notification reveals the ActivTrak agents’ presence to users who are unaware, 7.0 forces a screenshot to be taken at installation so that the administrator can grant screenshot permissions.
  • Improved URL capture:
  • This latest macOS agent release includes improved URL capture ensuring more reliability of url triggered alarms and website blocking features.
  • Auto-updates:
  • With 7.0, macOS agents can now auto-update to the latest version. This ensures macOS agents will always be up to date with the latest features and data collection.
  • Bug Fix:
  • A bug was fixed to ensure Real-time Thumbnails will be more reliably shown.