What is WiFi - What's The Beef With Beefing Up WiFi Security?

What is WiFi security I hear you ask? Well, in this age of identify theft and credit card fraud, its easy to understand the concerns regarding the secure transmission of data through a wireless (WiFi) network. Thankfully, there are plenty of things you can do to safeguard your wireless Internet connection from malicious intruders - to the point where it is just as safe as a wired one. These things generally only cost you a bit of time to set up and include:

* Using a personal firewall alongside good anti-virus software
* Turning off the file sharing feature on your computer
* Updating your operating system on a regular basis
* Password protecting your computer and any important files
* Only transmitting emails through secure Web based email sites (those that show https:// in the address bar)


There are also Encryption software programs that encode data sent across the WiFi network, such as login passwords and credit card details. Most sites these days that require you to enter this sort of information are secure anyway (web address starts with https://), but it's always better to be safe than sorry.

You can also set up a Virtual Private Network (VPN), which is probably the best way to protect your data when using a public WiFi network, such as those found in Airports and Hotels, etc. There is numerous VPN software available for Windows, Macintosh and Linux operating systems, and what it does is provide a protective shield around the user and the site they are accessing, so that anyone in between is unable to access the data being passed along. Think of it as trying to get on a train that is in a tunnel, you can only get access to the train at the start or end on the tunnel - the users point or the web site.

Hope that helps