Thursday, December 17, 2009

Tips for Business Travelers: Secure Wi-Fi Connection

The Wi-Fi Zones, also known as hot spot, are now-a-days easily accessible by users in areas such as hotels, airports, coffee shops and other public areas. A Wi-Fi Zones, provides a user a convenient way of accessing Internet using a wireless equipped devices such as laptops. However, it is important to take precautions to secure your data, since a hacker can easily access the data on an unsecured device. This article will cover few guidelines that you can follow to protect your data when using your device in a Wi-Fi zone.

First of all, before using a wire less device, such as laptop, in a Wi-Fi zone, make sure it is a legitimate hot-spot. Hackers can use routers with familiar network name to capture users' log-in information to gain access to their private data. If you doubt the legitimacy of the Wi-Fi zone, then you are safer to not use your wireless device in the area.

Next, make sure that the firewall on your computer is turned-on and the Windows' file-sharing feature is turned off. The firewall, when turned on, prevents an unauthorized user from getting access to your network or computer until you give them the permission to connect to your computer. Where as, the file sharing feature, when turned off, prevents the authorized user to get access to your files on your computer.

To confirm that the firewall is on, go to the start button on your computer, select setting option, and then select the Control Panel from the drop down. In the Control Panel window, double click the Windows Firewall icon, which will pop up the Windows Firewall window. In the pop-up window, confirm that the firewall is turned-on. This will prevent an unauthorized user from accessing your computer.

To confirm that the file-sharing is turned off, select the the Exceptions Tab in the Windows Firewall window, and confirm that the "File and Printer Sharing" option in the Programs and Services is unchecked. This will prevent a user connected to your system from accessing your files on your computer.

In general, it is a good idea to turn off the Wi-Fi radio and any wireless adapter attached to your computer whenever you do not need to use the wireless device. If the Wi-Fi radio is left on, a hacker can easily access information on your laptop using a peer-to-peer Wi-Fi connections.

Finally, while you are in a Wi-fi zone, if you plan to make a financial transactions using an online Credit Card option, make sure that you are going through a secured website. A secured website's URL address always starts with https instead of http and a lock icon at the bottom-right corner of the browser.

Friday, December 11, 2009

Your Computer Security Starts By Using Strong Password

When connecting a computer to a network, you are taking a risk in having an unauthorized user connect to your computer and access your files. One of the basic security measure you can use to prevent a user from logging into your computer is to use a strong password. Following are some tips for creating a strong password:
  • Use at least seven characters
  • Use a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers and symbols (!@#$%^&*)
  • Do not use a default password such as root, admin or dba
  • Do not use common or simple words such as password, 09876 or 1234567
  • Do not use name of a person or place that people might associate with you such as JohnJr or Disneyland
  • Do not use the date of birth, place of birth, social security number or driver license number
  • Do not write done the password anywhere that is accessible by others
  • Save your password in a password protected file or in an encrypted form
  • When updating your password, use a new password that is significantly different from the old password

Microsoft suggests 6 steps to build a strong password.