27 Dec 08 Internet Security

Written by: Nitima

With the increase in the usage of Internet based applications, the modern computing world is faced with a constant threat about widespread, Internet-gobbling viruses.  So much so is their effect that news related to virus attacks has become a part of our daily information dose.  General alerts about Trojans, worms, viruses, and other Internet-based threats are on a rise everywhere.  Unfortunately, that’s not good news.  Money is hard to come by in this economy, and not every company can afford to have their networks revamped every time their system becomes venerable to hackers.

Recently in the news was the story of a security vendor, RSA, which found that a Trojan in their server took more than 500,000 online banking accounts credentials, credit cards and other reports.  The compromised data was collected from hundreds of financial institutions around the globe.  The company’s IT Fraud Action team later disclosed shocking information that the hackers behind the attack may have spent years in developing the Trojan.  These viruses are tricky and sometimes the average institution or customer does not even come to know that their computers are infected with it.  The threat to the data stored in company servers is huge and to protect it, is the first priority for any business.  The best remedy here is to take a defensive and professional approach towards Internet security.

• First in the line of protective steps is to find an Internet security suite that covers all the basics of Internet security, such as viruses, spyware, spam, and firewall (and gives the user rights to customize its settings!).
• Many small to mid-sized organizations take a reactive approach to threats and do not give combating Internet based threats due recognition.  It is often seen that such companies implement security once an incident has occurred and they’ve recognized their vulnerability.  Choosing a right kind of service provider that can defend against phishing, spamming and other email related thefts can reduce your worries to a great extent.
• The IT team should be always updated about Internet security software updates and subscriptions.  The developers of these softwares constantly add security updates and fixes to their products.
• Install firewall almost immediately after configuring a system, laptop, server or any remote device.  A firewall is the first line of defense against threats to Internet security.  It could be in the form of a hardware device like a router or a software program.

Typically, by employing more tools, you can make your network protective, while the tools inter-operate with each other.  If no viruses attacks are detected, that doesn’t mean the technology isn’t working; rather, it could be acting as a preventive warning to the security traps.

Protecting your network is like protecting your house.  Hackers are like thieves who are looking for valuable data.  You will never want your company to be an easy place for any attacker and would want to guard it with security alarms and protective software’s.

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