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We've been treated to some pretty entertaining feats of espionage courtesy of Hollywood. Who can forget the way Tom Cruise dangled from the ceiling as he attempted to crack into a computer security system in "Mission Impossible?" Or how about the mysterious hacker who seems to slip past every security to corrupt the Rossum Corporation's data in the "Dollhouse" television series? Hacking into a network must require superhuman skills and knowledge, right? You might be surprised to learn how easy it is for someone to hack into a computer network. The fact is that many computer networks are practically defenseless to intruders. In the early days of home computer networks, the people who put the networks together were experts and enthusiasts. They put their systems together knowing how computers can communicate with each other and built in protective measures to prevent other computer users from snooping. User knowledge spans from expert to newbie.
Some users may be unaware of the dangers they can encounter if they don't properly secure their network. Others may think home network security is too complicated or confusing. But network security is more important than ever and it's worth the effort to learn more about it. An unprotected network could allow malicious hackers -- known as crackers -- access to your data. It might even allow someone to take control of your computers and use them to commit crimes like a distributed denial of service attack (DDoS). Even if no one snoops on your information or controls your computer, someone might use your network to access the Internet. As more ISPs begin to place caps on how much data you can download, it becomes even more important to control your network. You don't want to get slapped with a huge bill for Internet services you didn't even use. With the right tools and knowledge, you can minimize your chances of having your security compromised by malicious hackers or computer viruses.
Let's get started. Usually, these devices also connect to the Internet. Technically, if you have only one device connected to the Internet, it's part of a larger network. But you wouldn't have a network of your own. Computers running on the Windows operating system are more at risk of security invasions than Mac computers. That's to be expected -- the Windows operating system dominates the computer market. That means the Windows platform is a big target for people who want to exploit computers -- they've got a much larger target and potential payoff. Depending upon the protocols you use, you may have even more devices linked to your network. For example, Bluetooth gadgets can sync with each other when they come within range of the network. From a security standpoint, the pieces of hardware that will help provide security are firewalls and routers. Firewalls come in two varieties: hardware and software.
You can purchase a physical firewall device or run a firewall application. Many routers have firewall software built into them. Firewalls act like filters. They help you monitor data traffic between your network and the Internet. If you detect unusual traffic, that's a potential sign that someone has compromised your home network's security. Most firewalls have several security settings to choose from. The most restrictive settings are generally the safest, but they also limit your options. Most firewalls will allow you to create a list of Web addresses that are off limits. If you use a wireless router, you should make sure you set a password and enable encryption. Unprotected wireless networks are a bad idea. Most routers have either Wireless Encryption (WEP) or Wi-Fi Protected Access (WPA) encryption options. Some have both. WPA is more secure than WEP. Enabling encryption and choosing a strong router administrator password are two steps that will help keep your network secure.
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