If you have a small business with a few workstations at the office, you’ll still need to take active steps in protecting your network. After all, you’ll never know what any of your employees could be up to while surfing the net. Although they wouldn’t will it to compromise the security of the network nor your business, some of them unknowingly do so due to lack of education. They may think there’s nothing wrong with clicking a link on a spam mail they got when that link would have linked them directly to a hacker’ s website. In other words, there has to be a way for employee’s browsing habits to be monitored and observed in order for your network technician to know what dangers he may be up against when it comes to keeping the network in good shape.
Moves to protect a network definitely need to be fully functional, which means they must not leave out any chance for the dangers to find their way into the network. There has to be an administrator who will be in charge solely of keeping it clean and working well. Sometimes, small businessmen take this for granted, not realizing that one false move by an uneducated or reckless employee can get all computers on the network to crash. Definitely, the administrator should be consistently what people using the network are using it for. There must be clear guidelines on the use of the Internet. In fact, Internet usage that is not directly related to the job at hand must be banned altogether to reduce the risk of compromising the network’s security.
Another step a businessman can take is to have network security experts conduct a seminar within the office to be attended by all network users. People usually put their computers or networks at risk due to the absence of knowledge about these risks. By carefully taking the time to inform employees about the dangers associated with certain Internet activities such as file-sharing using peer-to-peer sites and downloading software whose integrity is unknown. When people are aware of the presence of threats, they would usually take it upon themselves to be more careful an d conscious of their Internet activities in the future, unless the intention is really to compromise the network.
Of course, to make sure that important files are never affected and always accessible for retrieval in case problems with the computers or the network come up, it is recommended that all of such files be safeguarded with backups on a remote access server site. You’ll never know when a bug begins to strike and wipe out your entire hard drive. Just to not leave anything to chance, which could mean too great a loss, it is important to have backups all the time.
In terms of prevention of online risks, a good move would be to install an IP changing software. With this program, anyone on the network is able to surf the web with their IP address hidden. And when the IP is hidden, so is that link between the hacker and his victim.
By: Brad M Smith
Posts Tagged ‘Hacker’
Network Security at Work
January 14th, 2010Online and Computer Security Advice – Protecting Your Home Wireless Network
October 16th, 2009
One issue you have to address if you choose to install a wireless system in your home is that of security. You want to make at least some effort to make it harder for others to access your computer network, especially those who may want to attack your computer or steal your personal information. You can reduce these risks if you use the available security features that are built into a typical wireless system.
Performing any of the following steps will help you maintain your privacy when using a wireless network, and performing all of the steps will help even more.
* Change the router’s user name and password: Use something other than the default user name and password in order to make it harder for a hacker to access your system.
* Control access with a user name and password: Most wireless routers have a mechanism called identifier broadcasting. It sends out a service set identifier (SSID) signal or an extended service set identifier (ESSID) signal to any device in the vicinity announcing its presence. Change the default user name to a unique user name. For added protection, set it up to require a password for access.
* Turn off identifier broadcasting: Hackers near your home can use identifier broadcasting to locate unprotected wireless networks. Disable this mechanism if your wireless router allows it.
* Turn off wireless network when not in use: If you will not be using your wireless network for an extended period of time, turn it off or disconnect it. Hackers are unable to gain unauthorized wireless access to your computers if the wireless network is not operating.
* Use encryption: The most effective way to secure your wireless network from intruders is to encrypt, or scramble, communications over the network. Typically, the default setting is to have this system turned off. Follow the directions included with your wireless router, or the product support information on the manufacturer’s web site, to turn on encryption. Turning on encryption will allow access only to users with the proper user names and passwords. If your wireless router doesn’t have an encryption feature, consider getting one that does. Two main types of encryption are available: Wired Equivalent Privacy (WEP) and the more secure Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA). Your computer, router, and other equipment must use the same encryption.
* Be careful away from home: If you are accessing the Internet through a public hot spot, do not use this connection for anything involving sensitive private information.
Depending on your system, you may not be able to adjust all of your router’s settings. You may want to review your router’s documentation or your ISP for additional information on securing your wireless system.
By: Todd Curtis, PhD
