COMPUTER SECURITY
    The Realities of Modern Computing
    Back in the days when we did not have the wonderful tool known as the internet, computer security meant locking the door of your house when you went out. Computer viruses were rare, hardly anyone got them, and no one cared very much.

    Today, things are very different. Thanks to the growth of the Internet, we can shop online, pay bills, find entertainment, even find friends and lovers online. But that connectivity has come a great cost, of stolen identities, stolen personal information and data and lost productivity. Today, EVERYONE needs to know about computer security, and how to maintain it.

    KEEPING YOUR PC SAFE

       Four Simple Rules to PC Security:


    Part 1 - BARRICADE YOURSELF FROM THE WORLD!

      Pink Floyd said "Tear Down the Wall!" Better advice came from them said to put "Another Brick in the Wall". Protecting your computer from uninvited guests means putting up a wall, or Firewall as it is usually called, to prevent malicious persons from taking control of your PC, or from unwanted software being installed on it. This can include viruses and pop-up advertising that are discussed later. Firewalls come in two distinct types, hardware based and software based.

      Hardware Firewalls
      When you someone calls your home on the telephone, they dial directly to your home phone. However, when you are at work, chances are that a person or voicemail system accepts that call, and determines if they should forward the call on to you. This is how a hardware firewall works. The device used to make the decision is called a router. In brief, any information coming in to your computer stops at the router. The router determines if that incoming traffic has been requested by you. If it is a webpage you asked for, or your emails, then it has been requested, and the router sends it on to your PC. If something comes in that has NOT been asked for, it is rejected. To get slightly more technical, your unique public internet address, called your IP address, stops at the router and is converted into an addressing scheme that only the router and your PC understand, and that no one on the internet can get to directly.

      Another very good benefit of using a router is that while you have just one connection coming IN to the router, you can usually connect 4 or more PC's to it, and share that single internet connection, using both wired and wireless connections. There is no need to pay your internet provider for a second or third IP address. Potentially, a home router can connect up to 253 computers (if you have enough switches or hubs to do so) all sharing just one Internet connection.

      Software Firewalls.
      A software firewall is a computer program that inspects your outgoing and incoming traffic and determines if it should be allowed to pass, somewhat similar to what a router does. However, much finer control is possible with a software firewall. You can specify that traffic from one site will be allowed, but not another. Or that one type of communication is okay, but not another, like email is okay, but no web browsing. Maybe you want web browsing, but no Instant Messenger traffic. If you have a home network with 3 or 4 computers, you can choose to let your other users access your files, or prevent them from doing so.

      If you are using Windows XP, Vista or 7, the easiest way to implement a good software firewall is to make sure your computer is up to date, all of them included a basic firewall, easily configured, and should protect you well. Numerous other vendors make PC firewalls, including most of the major Anti-Virus software makers, like Norton (Symantec), Macafee and Zone Alarms. Check our Links Page for links to some good one, but beware that the download versions are often limited time trial versions, unless you pay for them.

      Passwords
      All computers should be set up to ask for a password when you sign on to it. If someone is able to get past all of your hardware and firewalls, and this will be less than 1 percent of those who try, if you don't have a password to access your system, you are leaving the screen door unlocked for them. If you did not create a password for your account, click Start - Control Panel - User Accounts - select your account name - Create a Password. Don't make it too easy! Not your real name in any form, or if you do, make some letters in CAPS, or substitute a "$" for an "S", or "@" for "a". Be creative, but write it down somewhere so you cannot forget it.

      BEST PRACTICE
      The best practice you can do is to implement both a hardware and software firewall. The software solution is free when you have a recdent version of Windows, with most addtional programs costing between $20 to $100. The hardware firewall can cost between $40 to $150, depending on if the router has wireless or not, a printer port included, the number of PC ports, and brand name. Shop around.