Tuesday, August 23, 2011

How To Secure Your Wireless Network






People have more flexible time due to wireless network. Thanks to the invention of wireless. People can now work from home while taking care of their kids or doing house works. No more stress from traffic jam anymore. Is this great?

Well, there is something you should realize. Working from home while using a wireless local area network (WLAN) may lead to theft of sensitive information and hacker or virus infiltration unless proper measures are taken. As WLANs send information over radio waves, someone with a receiver in your area could be picking up the transmission, thus gaining access to your computer. They could load viruses on to your laptop which could be transferred to the company's network when you go back to work.

Believe it or not! Up to 75 per cent of WLAN users do not have standard security features installed, while 20 per cent are left completely open as default configurations are not secured, but made for the users to have their network up and running ASAP. It is recommended that wireless router/access point setup be always done though a wired client.

You can setup your security by follow these steps:

1. Change default administrative password on wireless router/access point to a secured password.

2. Enable at least 128-bit WEP encryption on both card and access point. Change your WEP keys periodically. If equipment does not support at least 128-bit WEP encryption, consider replacing it. Although there are security issues with WEP, it represents minimum level of security, and it should be enabled.

3. Change the default SSID on your router/access point to a hard to guess name. Setup your computer device to connect to this SSID by default.




4. Setup router/access point not to broadcast the SSID. The same SSID needs to be setup on the client side manually. This feature may not be available on all equipment.

5. Block anonymous Internet requests or pings. On each computer having wireless network card, network connection properties should be configured to allow connection to Access Point Networks Only. Computer to Computer (peer to peer) Connection should not be allowed.

Enable MAC filtering. Deny association to wireless network for unspecified MAC addresses. Mac or Physical addresses are available through your computer device network connection setup and they are physically written on network cards. When adding new wireless cards / computer to the network, their MAC addresses should be registered with the router /access point. Network router should have firewall features enabled and demilitarized zone (DMZ) feature disabled.

All computers should have a properly configured personal firewall in addition to a hardware firewall. You should also update router/access point firmware when new versions become available. Locating router/access point away from strangers is also helpful so they cannot reset the router/access point to default settings. You can even try to locate router/access point in the middle of the building rather than near windows to limit signal coverage outside the building.

There is no guarantee of a full protection of your wireless network, but following these suggested tips can definitely lessen your risk of exposing to attackers aiming at insecure networks.

Sunday, August 22, 2010

protect files on your USB drive

USB Safeguard


Our Rating: 4 stars (Very Good)
USB Safeguard enables you to encrypt and password protect sensitive data on your USB drive. You can selected one or more folders to be encrypted and choose to securely delete the original (unencrypted) files with the built-in file shredder. The program also includes a handy Safe Browsing feature that allows you to launch Internet Explorer without leaving any Internet traces on the host computer. Other features include an on-screen keyboard for secure password input and free space wiping. USB Safeguard uses 256-bit AES encryption to protect your date. The program is not installed on your PC, it runs directly from your USB pen drive.
Freeware
Download USB Safeguard

Wednesday, August 4, 2010

Access Your Computer anywhere - remote PC access








ShowMyPC (Free Version)

Our Rating: 3 stars (Good)
ShowMyPC combines VNC remote access technology with an open-source SSH forwarding client to provide you with the option to allow other users to view and control your desktop(access your computer with permission). The remote user needs to download the standalone ShowMyPC application and can access your computer with just a password (no IP address needed). The temporary session password is automatically generated when you start the viewing session and must be provided to the remote user by email, phone or other means. The free version is limited to one hour per session and lacks some advanced features.
Pros: Easy to use, one-click connectivity
Cons: Very slow connection, using the provided SSH server.
Freeware

ShowMyPC provides Remote Support and Meeting services to all users.
Services include free and premium Remote PC access, Desktop Sharing, Screen Sharing, and others. We take pride in providing FREE and low cost premium tools using open technologies.

With remote PC access, ShowMyPC has revolutionized the way businesses operate by removing all geographical barriers and allowing companies to collaborate online with colleagues, customers and partners in real time, all with just a PC and an Internet connection. We have made it possible for home and business PC users to access their PC from anywhere, receive remote support, schedule online meetings and web conferences, access remote PCs and provide IT support.

More Productive and Profitable

The ShowMyPC suite of features offers flexibility to businesses, making them more efficient. By allowing access to remote PCs, ShowMyPC transforms the way businesses operate. An employee can now collaborate with remote coworkers via web conference. An online meeting can be scheduled without having to physically travel to another location. Sales presentations and demonstrations can be made using broadcasting and webinars. If a customer has a problem, solutions can be provided via the IT support facility, by gaining remote PC access.

Best of all, there is no special training required to set up or use ShowMyPC on your system. The application is reliable and secure, ensuring that confidentiality is maintained. By using ShowMyPC's various packages, company employees can access files, programs and email from wherever they are, making them more productive. It's like carrying the office or home business wherever you go.

If you are an organization looking for complete data control and security options, ShowMyPC provides you with options to use your private server and customize the software.

Convenient, Simple and User-friendly

The three direct advantages you can enjoy with ShowMyPC remote access software are convenience, IT support through remote PC access and better productivity. The service is secure and easy to use, and it ensures that collaborative projects go smoothly, saving users time. Our customers choose ShowMyPC for its simplicity, convenience, ease of use and security. Just about anyone can learn to access a remote PC. Share files. Control, view and access a remote PC desktop, securely.

See More Screen Shots
Download ShowMyPC (Free Version)

backup and synchronization software


PureSync

PureSync


Our Rating: 4 stars (Very Good)
PureSync is a file backup and synchronization software that can automatically keep a backup of your important files, import files from your digital camera and synchronize the contents of multiple folders. The program offers a step-by-step wizard to configure your backup and synchronization tasks and set advanced options like file exclusions, conflicts management, compare options and more. You can choose to run the backups manually as needed or automatically on a regular schedule. The program can also synchronize your files automatically when it detects that they have been modified, or when a specific device (e.g a USB drive) is connected or a certain folder is found.
Freeware
Download PureSync

Thursday, July 29, 2010

Free personal firewall

ZoneAlarm


Our Rating: 4 stars (Very Good)
ZoneAlarm provides essential protection for Internet users. Combining the safety of a dynamic firewall with total control over applications Internet use, ZoneAlarm gives rock-solid protection against thieves and vandals. ZoneAlarm makes ironclad Internet security easy-to-use. ZoneAlarm gives you control over the door to your computer. With Stealth Mode enabled, ZoneAlarm`s Firewall renders your computer invisible to the Internet and potential intruders. If you can t be seen, you can t be attacked. Because you tell ZoneAlarm how you use your computer, the firewall only allows traffic that you understand and initiate. ZoneAlarm s firewall provides the ultimate intrusion security for your personal computer. ZoneAlarm also introduces MailSafe which enables users of ZoneAlarm to detect and control Visual Basic Script attachments to emails they receive while ZoneAlarm is running. Free for personal and non-profit use.
Freeware
Download ZoneAlarm

Monday, July 26, 2010

personal firewall

PC Tools Firewall Plus


Our Rating: 3 stars (Good)

PC Tools Firewall Plus is a personal firewall that monitors incoming and outgoing traffic on your computer and allows to to create rules to limit and control network connections. The program includes an application level firewall as well as a rule based TCP/IP firewall. The default settings of the firewall will prevent several common attacks while allowing normal internet traffic. You can create your own rules using protocol, port and IP address - however it requires some experience with TCP/IP configuration, as no documentation is provided. The integrated application filtering engine will prompt you each time an unknown program is trying to connect to the Internet, giving you the option to block or allow current and future activities by the same program. Requires free registration after 30 days.
This program automatically installs the Google toolbar unless you opt-out. [?]

Pros: Controls incoming and outgoing traffic

Cons: No documentation; application rules are not verified with file fingerprint; default settings block LAN connectivity;

Freeware

Download PC Tools Firewall Plus

capture HTTP/HTTPS traffic

HTTP Analyzer


Our Rating: 4 stars (Very Good)

HTTP Analyzer enables you to capture HTTP/HTTPS traffic in real-time, allowing you to analyze, debug and diagnoze web application traffic. The program supports all application that support WININET or Mozila NSS API, including Internet Explorer, Firefox, Outlook, Outlook Express etc. It can trace Header, Content, Cookies, Query Strings, Post data, Request and Response Stream, redirection URLs and other information and comes with a requirs builder to generate custom HTTP/HTTPs requests. Other features include Internet Explorer integration, request filtering, cache and cookie clearing, log export to XML and more.
Free Trial, $129.00 to buy

Download HTTP Analyzer