Internet Tips & Tricks
By MARK DAVIS
General Manager, CommSpeed Internet Service
Vice
President, Prescott Computer Society
Visit the Computer Society Website
www.prescottcomputersociety.org
Protect Yourself from Hackers
 If
an intruder can find a way into your computer, a program
can be planted that will steal your personal information
and broadcast it back to the intruder through an
opening, known as a port. That information can include
passwords, account numbers, credit card numbers and
anything else you have on your computer.
Intruders use scanning
programs that search the Internet for open computers.
You are at risk if you if you have a static (unchanging)
Internet Protocol number. An IP number is an address,
and if it is static, and if an intruder identifies your
computer as vulnerable, you could be attacked at any
time. Most broadband connections require a static IP
People with dial-up
systems are much less vulnerable because their IP number
usually changes each time they dial in. If an intruder
discovers their computer on Monday and returns on
Tuesday to attack it, he or she will be out of luck. The
computer will have a new address.
To block intruders, you
need a firewall. It controls what information you let in
and let out of your computer while you are using the
Internet. You may have one already. If you are sharing
that cable connection with other computers in your home,
you may be using a router. Many of these include a
hardware firewall.
The firewall in Windows
XP is lame. Don't rely on it. It only controls
information getting into your computer and not
information leaving it.
So, if you need a
software firewall, use Zone Alarm. This useful
program can be found at
www.zonelabs.com. The free version is pretty tough
to find on their site. Click on Zone Alarm (free) under
“direct links.”
You also should test
your computer for vulnerabilities. The site below will
tell you if you have open ports. To run the test, go to:
www.dslreports.com/scan
Make yourself invisible to intruders! They can't attack
you if they don't know you're there.
NEXT:
Spyware
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