Wireless Routers for Homes; Are they Even Safe to Use?

Many are wondering if wireless routers used in homes are safe to use and if there are any risks if other people use their internet connection. Indeed, wireless routers may offer free internet to some, but because of this fact, some people with dark intentions in mind can exploit this opportunity.

Hijacking Connection

Computer forensics say that someone can use your wireless internet connection to attack other computer networks. Hackers would prefer to use others internet connection, instead of theirs when they attack a particular target. Although hackers can mask their connection, details and location, it is much safer for them to use other’s internet connection. That way, the hacker will not be blamed for the attack he made, thus making him anonymous.

Attack the Computer and the Network

Despite the fact that there are new types of computers and operating systems, some people are still using ancient computers and operating systems in their homes, much worse, they have no decent protection against virus and malware. These types of computers are the easiest to penetrate. Once these computers are penetrated via the wireless network, hackers can then secretly install a Trojan. It can be used to transmit important information of the target, such as credit car information, banking information and etc. Hackers can use this information for their advantages, unknown to their victims.

The Zombie Computer

If zombies are scary, then a zombie computer would be scarier to digital computer forensics and security experts. The hijacked connection will be used to perform a specific attack at a specific time. A computer turned zombie can be used repeatedly by a hacker, through the installation of software. The software installed can be used to coordinate attacks; if there are more zombies the hacker controls then that could be more dangerous.

Data Storage

There are instances when hackers will need a place to hide the data they have stolen. And what is the most suitable storage place to use? It’s a computer with a wireless connection. The data is masked perfectly that only graduates of a computer forensic course can detect them. The data is hidden well and is not visible to the desktop’s user and the disk space will seem unused. Knowing how this happened will be very troubling.

The Bandwidth

Hackers will even use the bandwidth or connection of the one owning wireless connection to upload or download huge amounts of computer data. These types of files can be in Gigabytes and could lead to additional bills for that person’s internet connection.

Violates Privacy

No person with healthy state of mind would like someone activating their microphone just to listen to the conversations inside the house. Or activate the camera to see what is inside the house. If hackers are planning to hack a company, then hacking the privacy of certain officials would surely help their cause.

How to Protect The System

It is important to protect the wireless system against hackers. First thing to do is to configure the firewall of the operating system, so that there are some levels of protection. It is also possible to purchase firewalls to supplement or replace the current firewall of the system. Although they are hard to configure, there are manuals that would provide a step-by-step guide on how one could configure their firewall.

The second thing to do is to install the latest antivirus software; an antivirus software that has anti-hacking capabilities. It is important to know how to effectively use the software, since there are other things aside from protection anti-virus software can offer. There are many good anti-viruses in the market, such as Kapersky, Norton and others.

Turn off the router or the internet connection when the computer is not used. If there is a need to store important information like details in bank accounts, passwords or any other private information, store it on other secure media or in a secure external drive that will make the data encrypted so that the hacker cannot retrieve it. Sometimes routers will provide security features and encryption, thus it is much better to know how to make use of this. Of course, the hardware will provide manuals that will guide their users on how to activate and configure the security features of the router. It might be confusing at start, but it is worth it.

The International Council of E-Commerce Consultants (EC-Council) is a member-based organization that certifies individuals in cybersecurity and e-commerce. It is the owner and developer of 20 security certifications. EC-Council has trained over 90,000 security professionals and certified more than 40,000 members. These certifications are recognized worldwide and have received endorsements from various government agencies. They also offer trainings in computer forensics.

More information about EC-Council is available at www.eccouncil.org.

Network Security – Protecting the Home Users, SMEs and Large Enterprises

Nowadays, the computer and the Internet play huge roles in running businesses, whether it is at-home, small, medium or large enterprises. The computer and the Internet is used in marketing and presenting the products, studying the market, interacting with clients and most of all conducting transactions with clients or business partners.

With the great importance of Internet and computer in running any business, clearly there is a huge importance of securing the network particularly those networks where sensitive and important data has been stored. In fact, it is very common in every news headlines, publications or televisions that computer networks from different companies have suffered security breaches and that lead to huge losses in their financial and social status in the business world.

This is why it is important to have a network security service that not only checks the vulnerabilities in the system but also protect those vulnerabilities from being exploited, much better if the services can prevent any attack from ever happening to the company. What do you think will happen when clients lost their important information when they were conducting business with you?

Yes, it is embarrassing but it is just the start. Since the system has been compromised you will have to pay huge amount of money just to fix the system, perform computer forensics, strengthen security and recover the stolen data. The company’s reputation will be damaged and it could lead to loss of investments and customers which could lead to the company’s downfall. So how can an at-home, small, medium or large enterprise protect their networks?

In fact, the answer should never be hard because there are many ways to protect and secure computer networks. Some attacks that threaten most business are when hackers steal the credit card or personal information of the clients of the business or exploiting their social security numbers. So in order to prevent this from ever happening companies and institutions must perform a regular security audit on their system. Large companies and institutions like hospitals and universities are required to accomplish this task. However, there are some businesses that do not have the enough resources to perform this task and these are small and medium enterprises making them the most vulnerable to these attacks.

Since hackers will employ different means for them to breach or gain access to the company’s system; companies must replicate all or at least most of those methods when auditing their security system. An audit on the system will check the vulnerabilities or weaknesses of the system’s structure; this is what every security expert and digital computer forensics professional call as penetration testing. Penetration testing is all about isolating each security threat, whether it is mild, moderate or critical; furthermore, it is used to determine the best set of actions against each threat.

In a pen test, the key areas of the system have to be targeted to completely enforce the company’s network security. It will help prevent any financial loss from frauds, hackers or extortionists or the lost of revenue because of unreliable business processes and systems. Not complying with the?recommendation could possibly lead to loss of important data, penalties, bad reputation from the media and the public sector and ultimately losing the business. For the employees, it could mean losing the job and if a certain employee is the source of the problem, he or she would face prosecution and possibly land behind bars.

When it comes to regular home user or at-home businesses, there are a few basic details one has to accomplish, particularly if they have a wireless network system in their home. There are easy and effective ways to protect the network from hackers and other users who want to piggyback on the system.

Add security by changing the SSID or the name of the network. Disable SSID broadcast and DHCP Control Mac Address Filtering. Add more security in your system by adding WEP encryption to block other mechanisms and means of the hackers. And further improve your security by setting a random 10 characters pre-shared key to ensure that the network is safe and secured; locked by a random mix of numbers and also letters. Together with effective firewall and anti-virus software, at-home businesses can strengthen the security of their system, no need for any computer forensic course or any other security training, but it won’t hurt to have them.

The International Council of E-Commerce Consultants (EC-Council) is a member-based organization that certifies individuals in cybersecurity and e-commerce. It is the owner and developer of 20 security certifications. EC-Council has trained over 90,000 security professionals and certified more than 40,000 members. These certifications are recognized worldwide and have received endorsements from various government agencies. They also offer trainings in computer forensic.

More information about EC-Council is available at www.eccouncil.org.