Posts tagged internet security
What Is A VPN?
Feb 22nd
If your company has many offices in different locations, or allows employees to telecommute (work from home), it is highly likely that your company has VPN installed. VPN stands for virtual private network and has many business applications, but primarily a way to extend the office network over various locations.
For ordinary users, however, they would know VPN as a means to hide their email address so that they can surf the Internet anonymously or bypass web site access restrictions such as firewalls. An example would be a user on VPN being able to avail of Internet television when this would be normally blocked on his computer.
Ordinary users would most likely be using VPN in the second scenario. There are a number of VPN services being offered over the Internet. For simple anonymous surfing, you can find a service as cheap as $5/month or even for free!
But if you want to download or stream content, you should have a premium VPN account. Aside from being readily available, the subscription may have other value-added features (depending on the provider) such as your own IP address, strong encryption for any data you are sending over the Internet and your choice of server locations (to be able to visit sites that would normally block your access).
That said, before subscribing to a VPN service, decide how you are going to use it: Is it simply for browsing web site content? Download torrents? Watch Internet television? Each provider has its own terms and conditions for service and some will include restrictions against “illegal” activities such as P2P file sharing of intellectual property. It is best to look for and read the fine print before committing to anything.
Also, try before you buy. Providers who offer a trial period show that they have confidence in their product. On your part, it is often the best way to know if the service is works for you.
Here are a couple of things to check: Internet speed and quality of technical support. You will want to know how reliable the Internet speed is, and how fast or slow it is (depends on what you want to do). You will also want a technical support team that doesn’t take weeks to respond to your questions or help requests, and who actually know what to do when problems or issues arise.
Online forums are good sources of feedback on particular VPN service providers. Customer testimonials are well and good, but then you hardly read anything negative in those. With online forums, if you read a lot of negative feedback on a provider from different people, that may be a sign that you shouldn’t do business with that provider. In any case, you should try to get as much information as possible before subscribing.
Anonymous surfing and email security tools can be a great way to improve your resistance against threats online. Stuart Fisk is an experienced publisher who helps individuals minimize risk by using VPN Service services at work or at home. For additional information about this and other related topics search the internet and you can find a large amount at connectinprivate.com.
3 Tips for Better Online Security
Oct 14th
Profix maintains Computers and solves Computer problems in Newry, Co.Down. Over the years a lot of knowledge has been gathered with regard to how average PC users tackle the issue of internet security. The majority of people have a bad habit of ignoring problems (Shutting down the PC at the fist sign of trouble and assuming that things will be OK tomorrow) and also of neglecting some basic security guidelines. As you might expect, this kind of attitude will land you and your computer in trouble. Here are some simple tips to follow to avoid problems.
1.Keep all of your Software updated with Secunia’s Free Online Software Scanner. Our experience in the Computer Repair/Maintenance field over the last 10 years shows that most computer users are slow to update their software or dont bother at all. Is this a problem? Yes, very much so. Old software is highly likely to be vulnerable to attack by hackers. These vulnerabilities must be fixed by installing the latest version of the software. The problem is that with so many different installed programs, keeping track of their status can become a chore. This is where Secunias free online Scan will help. It will check 70 of the most common programs for vulnerabilities, including Windows Updates Firefox, Messenger, Zonealarm and Java. Check it out: http://secunia.com/vulnerability_scanning/online/
2.Change your passwords regularly & make them stronger. This might sound like a chore, but it will result in a much more secure computer. Get a system up and running to scupper any hacking attempt. A password will be much stronger if you include at least one uppercase letter and one number. Consider making it even tougher by using the number ‘3′ instead of ‘e’ where it appears in your password. The word ‘easy’ would become ‘3asy’ if you were applying this simple tactic. Another advanced trick is to use a simple mnemonic to remember your new complex password. For example, ‘iLavs’ could be “I like anti virus software.”
3. Be careful about what you download, particularly if you use peer to peer applications. Nowadays, the use of music sharing applications account for a massive proportion of infections. If you are asked to download something you dont recognise, Google is your friend for research. Don’t be afraid to find out what you are dealing with.
If you take a few minutes to consider these areas each month, you will have a much better chance of staying secure and virus free. The odds will be stacked in your favour and you may not have to visit your local computer repair shop as often.
Avoiding Spyware
Aug 17th
Spyware is software that is fabricated with the intent to do what its name implies, spy on you. Not only can spyware record your online browsing history, it can steal your person data, leading to identity theft. As such, it is very important to prevent spyware from invading your computer and getting rid of it if you happen to have any.
The best way to get rid of and prevent spyware is by getting software to monitor and remove it. There are software packages you can buy that range from about $30-$70. There are also free ones out there, such as Microsoft Windows Defender, which is available for free if you have Windows XP or Vista. Watch out for pop-ups advertising free spyware removal programs as they are likely spyware in disguise.
Yes, you’re going to need software if you don’t want spyware. But there are also things that you should do by yourself to prevent it…
You want your operating system and browser to always be on the latest version, so update them. It will also help if you use something other than Internet Explorer as it is the most popular browser and, consequently, the most targeted for spyware and other malware.
Don’t use P2P file sharing networks. If you download music or movies from them, you may very well be getting some type of malware. Some of these networks install spyware on your computer even if you don’t download files from them.
Only download files from sites that you can trust. You should be very weary of downloading movies or music, especially ones that are free to download.
Your internet security setting, which you can adjust by going to tools, should be at decent levels (they should be at least medium).
It is advised that you get a firewall because it will keep others from having remote access to your computer.
Avoid free toolbars, which are from some unknown company. However, you can install a toolbar from a trusted source, such as Google, which can stop popups from appearing on your browser and thus prevent spyware in the process.
A lot of people say that you should read the license agreements as well as the privacy statements when trying to prevent spyware. Rather than actually spending time reading this material, just be sure to only download from places that you trust.
About the Author:
For some more advice on preventing and removing spyware, check out How to Get Rid of Spyware and How to Get Eliminate Spyware.
Protect Yourself With Proxy Sites
Jul 5th
Proxy sites have been around for quite a while, but it’s only recently that their use has come into vogue with the mainstream Internet crowd. College students in particular have found a lot of uses for those sites with the wireless Internet access in their respective schools. But proxy sites are good for more than just collegiate shenanigans.
Liberating the Internet
Although Internet access is now common in most schools, it doesn’t mean that you’ll be able to browse all your favorite sites. Almost every school that offers wireless Internet access also enforces one kind of website blocking or another, such that sites like Facebook and MySpace are inaccessible. It might not sound like a big thing when you’re reading about it, but it’s a really big hassle when you spend a big chunk of each school day without access to your favorite sites.
Proxy sites are the quickest way to regain access to those important sites and ” yes ” social networks. Their non-blacklisted URLs let you surf under the radar of the server, so you’ll be able to access those banned sites, social networks and more risqu domains ” even when the administrators tell you otherwise.
At the same time, the school servers also won’t be able to track the sites that you visit. All they’ll see is a record of your visiting the URL of the proxy site, but no more than that. It’s a handy solution if you don’t want the school administrators nosing about your Internet activity.
Keeping it Quiet
Avoiding awkward questions from teachers and bosses about your browsing activity is just one part of the deal. Many websites nowadays want to take note of your IP address and track your movements so that they can feed you better advertisements. If you’re the average Internet user, this is something you’ll want to avoid, especially with all the viruses and malware going around nowadays.
On top of that, third parties trying to keep tabs on your movements on the Internet will find it extremely difficult to follow you. That’s because they’ll end up seeing the IP address and details of the proxy that you used instead of your own. If you use different proxy sites for every browsing session, you could confuse trackers even more by taking on various IP addresses that point to places all over the world.
This comes especially handy if you want to visit sites that nobody else should know about. Do you want to keep those nightly visits to certain sites a secret from your roommate or parents? Proxy sites can make it happen; even if they snoop around on your computer, all they’ll see is the URL of the site you used.
If you’re like most Internet users today, you want your online browsing to be ‘me’ time, something only you know about and enjoy. A lot of people nowadays, though, want to encroach on your privacy and track all sorts of things about your Internet habits. Proxy sites give you a quick and no-cost solution to reclaim the Internet and make your online browsing a personal pastime again.
About the Author:
Internet experts recommend rotating between different proxies to improve privacy and security assurance. With the comprehensive and up-to-date list of proxy sites at Juvos.com, you’ve nothing to worry about.
