Quantcast
Subscribe to magazine

Unsafe at High Speed: Security on Your Broadband Connection

Broadband connections are dynamite, but they also create major security holes. Here's how to keep hackers at bay.

  • 0 Yes
  • 0 No

High-speed Internet access via digital subscriber line or cable modem connections might be the greatest tech innovation since the Backspace key. But there's a catch: Those persistent, "always-on" connections expose your PC to all sorts of security risks. If your PC is not configured properly, your files can be stolen or destroyed, and your private communications intercepted.

I know, because it happened to me: A few weeks after I had DSL hooked up at home, I began testing some antihacking software on my PC. Within a few days of loading the software, I was horrified to discover that several times a week my PC was being scanned, probed, or otherwise prodded for weaknesses in its security settings.

The good news is that you can prevent malicious hack attacks by taking a few simple steps. Sure, it'll take some time--but think of it as checking the locks on your front door and repairing those that need attention. Your files' safety is worth the minor hassle.

  • Recommend this story?
  • 0 Yes
    0 No

Print 65% more pages than with refilled inks. Trust Original HP Inks. Hit Print Reliably.

Featured APC Accessories For Your System
10% Off Entire Cart at Online Store

  • APC Back-UPS ES Safeguards your equipment from damaging surges and spikes that travel along your utility & data lines.
  • APC SurgeArrest Performance Highest level of protection for your professional computers, electronics and connected devices, as well as provides surge protection.

Focus on Personal Productivitysponsored by Microsoft

  • Personal Finance 2.0 These free and fee-based Web services not only aggregate data from your online bank accounts, they give you tools for managing your money.
  • High-Tech Travel Tips Plenty of stories provide advice for elite mobile professionals. But what about you, the unproductive traveler?

People who read this also read:

PC World's Marketplace