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Learn how to protect home and business computers and networks from Internet attacks by using firewalls, antivirus and anti-spyware software.

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Protecting Your Network

The number of homes with high-speed Internet connections is rapidly increasing. Since the connection is always on, you can access the World Wide Web, make purchases, access your bank account, and even pay your bills online at any time without tying up a phone line.

But with the convenience of broadband access also comes the risk of Internet intruders. There are a growing number of threats to your network's safety and security, such as viruses, spam e-mail, and hackers. Identity theft is also a very serious and growing issue, as someone could access your confidential and personal information. Consider several scenarios of an unprotected wired or wireless network:

  • Someone near your house or even a neighbor could be "tapping in" on the high-speed Internet access that you paid for.
  • Someone could steal your credit card information, user name, and passwords while you are shopping or browsing online.
  • Someone could gain control of your computer or install viruses that could infect your entire network and spread to the people that you email to.

When connecting to the Internet, there can be threats to your network's safety and security.

Firewalls offer a variety of security features that help to protect your networked computers and put your concerns at ease. To help you better understand these security features, they are divided into two levels:

Basic Level:

Network Address Translation (NAT) Technology - Prevents hackers from seeing and attacking your network address while you are surfing the web. NAT takes a public IP address and translates it into several private IP addresses, so a computer behind a Firewall with NAT technology is difficult to see by outside hackers.

Advanced Level:

Stateful Packet Inspection (SPI) Firewall - Inspects packets of information coming into your system to make sure they are not an attack from a hacker. When information is requested from a Web site, it is sent out through the SPI Firewall and is noted as a request destination. Any unfamiliar or unlisted destinations are rejected.

Virtual Private Network (VPN) - Enables communication over the Internet with another computer on your network using a secure, encrypted connection. VPNs are frequently used by businesses and home offices. It is commonly used by people traveling or working from their home who want to connect to their company's network to check e-mail or access business applications.