Protecting your computer on a public network

Do you own a laptop? Have you ever used your laptop at a public wi-fi (wireless internet) location to use the free (or paid) wireless internet services? Often, places like Libraries (or at least some libraries here in Toronto), Starbucks, Coffee Shops and even some restaurants offer a wireless internet service which anyone can use if they bring along their laptop or mobile computing devices.

Why should you care about protecting your computer while using pubilc wi-fi netoworks?

Although this is pretty cool, one thing that you must be aware of is that using these networks might not always be the most secure thing to do. Using public internet might mean that you are opening up your computer for lots of snoopers and malignant people to take advantage of your computer. In fact, after a recent visit to the library I noticed that many people (unknowingly I presume) were actually sharing the files on their computer with everybody else in the network. As a result, anyone else on the network was also able to freely access these shared files and folders. What’s more? Some people even stored files (fortunately, being the good citizen that I am, I did not open these files or do anything malicious with them!) in these folders!

What does all this mean?

It means that if you use your computer on a public network, you have to be extra secure.Theoretically, someone could delete files, edit files and even transfer malicious files to the computer to execute code (plus, if you never visited any website or downloaded anything… and you get a Windows UAC prompt, you’re likely to just click Confirm and allow the malicious application that some transferred to your computer to happily go on performing its evil tasks!)! If this doesn’t sound more scary than Conficker, I don’t know what will.

How can you protect yourself?

Protecting your computer while using public networks should be the first thing you do, even before you start using the network. In this post, I’m going to assume that most of you will be using Windows Vista. The settings for Windows XP (you might want to make a google search if you are unsure… most things that I mention here for Vista also apply for XP, but configuring them for XP might be a little different) are similar, but since most laptops now come with Vista, I’ll only cover the Windows Vista and Mac OS X in this article.

The first thing that you should do is turn off all File Sharing.

To do so on Windows Vista:

1. Double click on the “Internet Icon” in the system tray in your taskbar. In the picture below, it’s the icon between the “Battery Icon” and the “Volume Adjustment/Speaker Icon”. Doing so should take you to the “Network and Sharing Center”. If there’s no “Internet Icon” then, you’ll have to open your start menu (or click on the “Windows Orb” and type in “Network and Sharing Center”.
2. In the '”Network and Sharing Center”, under Sharing and Discovery click on arrow beside any topic that has a “Green” light (meaning that the sharing for that area is turned on.. and anybody on the network will be able to see whatever you are sharing). Then, simply select ‘Turn Off’ and click ‘Apply’.
3. Then accept the Windows UAC prompt.
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 for any other feature for which file sharing might be turned on.

Doing so will make sure that no files/folders, be it the Public folder on your computer or any other folder, is shared on the network.

On a Mac, the process is similar. Click the Apple Button on top left hand corner, choose ‘System Preference’ and go to ‘Sharing’. There, uncheck all checkboxes to make sure that your computer isn’t sharing anything.

Step 2: Use a firewall to prevent any direct connections from other computers

Often, although you might disable any sharing of files, other computers might still be able to connect to your computer through any other ports (think of them like ‘doors’) that might be open. So naturally, the best and easiest way to protect yourself, although not the most ‘sure fire’ way, is to turn on a firewall that will try and block most of the attempts to access your computer. If you don’t yet have a firewall, you might want to consider getting a free firewall if your computer is not running too slow (although if it is running a bit on the slower side, you might want to check out this article to speed up your windows computer).

At the very least, turn on Windows Firewall, which will prevent incoming connections (or others) from accessing your computer.

Step 3: Use an anti-virus program and keep your computer updated

Well, there isn’t much you can do after you’ve secured all the entry ways into your computer, so the only other ways to make sure that nothing else malicious is already on your computer and there are no ‘security’ holes in your computer are to run Anti-Virus software and keep your computer updated.

As for the Virus software, you don’t always have to turn on heuristics for it to keep on searching your computer all the time and making it really slow. Like I mention in my article to make your computer a bit faster, just turn on it’s basic settings and let it perform a scan once in a while when you are not using your computer. However, if you do across a suspicious (and when I mean suspicious I mean really suspicious…. like a birthday greeting card from your friend) just manually scan it.

Also, don’t forget to let Windows install the Microsoft updates when it bugs you do.. you don’t always have to do it right when it starts bugging you to.. but it’s a good idea to do it when you have the time.

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Best Free Downloadable Firewalls for Windows Computers

With the advent of the internet, it’s really easy for anyone to connect to the internet and access other computers (i.e. servers) across the globe. However, this also means that other computers across the globe can actually access YOUR computer in a similar fashion. By doing so these evil, evil men can actually take control of your computer, insert malicious files that will track your password/credit card number and/or use your computer to do something evil.

How do you protect yourself from other malicious programs or people from accessing your computer? With a Firewall of course! But like most things in the computer software world, Firewalls often come at a price. Although this price might be minimal (around $20 – 30 on average, some times you might have to renew it every year), considering the safety it provides, it might still be worth it to get a free firewall that will be able to do almost the same thing.

Here are a few things that you might want to try out. Keep in mind though that sometimes having a firewall might actually be more annoying, since it will often ask you whether or now you’d like to connect to a server or website. However, in the long run it might save you the trouble of reinstalling your computer or calling up your credit card company to report a fraud. Also, it might slow down the speed of your computer as it constantly monitors your incoming/outgoing connections from every application that connects to the Internet. But given the speed of average computers the speed should be “negligible” or at the most unnoticeable.

Additionally, you might at least want to turn on your Windows Firewall (although this will only prevent incoming connections and not prevent any outgoing connections) if you don’t plan to use a third-party firewall. If you do use a third party firewall, you should disable Windows Firewall.

Some free firewalls, in order of preference

Comodo Firewall – Comodo make a lot of great products that I like, and their firewall is one of them. For the most part it is unobtrusive, but does a good job of notifying you of any incoming/outgoing connections that it thinks are ‘suspicious’. Plus, it has an easy to use interface that doesn’t look like anything from “the Matrix”. If you’re looking for a simple free firewall that does it job quite well, Comodo should probably be your first or second choice. Also, do note that when you download the firewall, it actually might download their firewall AND their antivirus suite. So you you already have an antivirus suite, and you’re okay with it, you should only install their firewall.

Free Zone Alarm – The free version of the Zone Alarm Firewall is not as powerful (or so they say) as it’s paid big brother, but I still thing that it does a fairly ok job of making sure that no internet packet goes unnoticed. It also has a pretty simple interface to use, so if you aren’t an experienced Firewall user, you might prefer to have something like this.

Sunbelt Kerio Firewall  – If you’re using Windows XP (but it also works for Vista now apparently, although I haven’t tested it out) then this firewall is still one of the best ones out there. It does the job of every other firewall out there, and also provides some of its premium features (like ad-blocking) for a period of 30 days. If you don’t want to buy it (you probably don’t need to… unless you’d like to support their software), then after 30 days, it’ll just function in the normal firewall mode.

Tall Emu Firewall – Again, this is a fairly good free product, but doesn’t have all the pro features such as ‘Keylogger detection’ and so on. But obviously, you don’t need these features if you have a little common sense (i.e. if you are getting an incoming connection from some random computer on the internet, you probably shouldn’t allow it to access your system files).

Of course, there are several other Free Firewalls out there, but I’ve never used or heard of any other good ones. So, if you feel like you know about something else that might be worth while… do share!

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Top 10 ways to secure and improve your wireless network

A while ago I posted a couple of tips on how to speed up and improve your wireless network, and one of the tips in that was to secure your wireless network. Well the truth is, it's extremely easy to secure your wireless network, but most people do not secure their networks!

That's bad, very bad, because anyone who decides to 'tap' into your wireless network can easily steal your information (especially if you happen to do a lot of online shopping) and even steal your Internet (did I mention they can use your Internet connection to download songs illegally and get you into trouble?).

So follow this article and secure your wireless network! It is imperative for everyone who has their own wireless network in a home or small business setting to take the following steps to ensure the well being of the network.

1. Give your router an admin password - Learn how to change the admin password for your router by reading the manual or checking the manufacturer's support website.
2. Change your routers SSID - Your router's SSID is like its name. If you set this to default, your neighbour might be accidentally using your wireless connection or you might accidentally use your neighbour's connection (which is a crime). You want to be sure that you can distinctly identify your router and prevent others from accidentally connecting to it, which will make your Internet slower.
3. Use at least WPA2 Encryption - Not using encryption is like yelling your credit card number out loud. Anyone paying attention and snooping in on your wireless network can intercept all data that goes between the wireless router and the computer. Make sure you use at least WPA2 encryption. If your router doesn't have a WPA2 option then you might want to upgrade to a newer router or check for a firmware update.
4. Use a hard to break pre-shared key - Make sure it is 63 characters long and make up of random letters, number and characters. Since you don't have to remember anything (you only need to set this on your router and computer/console once) A great way to generate good passwords is to use the GRC Passwords Page. It generates a key for you automatically. I recommend you use WPA2 and use a 63 character random ASCII string. Remember, once you use the key on your router, you'll need it for your computer too, so making a text file of the key might be helpful.
5. Disable SSID Broadcast - Once your set up your router and initiate the wireless network, it is a good idea to turn off the SSID so people might not get tempted to try and use your network.
6. Enable MAC Address Filtering - MAC in this case means Media Access Control, not a Mac. It allows you to specify the machines (i.e. only your machine) that can connect to your network.
7. Try to broadcast only in Wireless G - If possible try and broadcast only on a 802.11 G band so that people with 802.11 B hardware will not be able to connect. If you have a laptop or device that needs 802.11 B, then obviously this isn't an option.
8. Make sure to turn off any extended range functionality if living in a small house. Extended range mode will only make your router send out more powerful signals and make your network susceptible to attacks.
9. Change Miscellaneous settings - Disable features such as gaming mode, and enable features such as discard PING from WAN side. This will prevent an attacker from compromising your network by repeatedly pinging your router to death.
10. Update Update Update - If you haven't ever updated your router's firmware, then it's high time you do so. Make sure you stay informed about the latest developments in the wireless world too.

Do the tips above make me sound like a security freak? I think not. Better safe then sorry, right? You be the judge.

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Troubleshooting Wireless Internet Problems

Does your wireless internet disconnect all the time? Here are a couple of tips that will help you find and solve the problem so that you can happily browse the web once again without having to worry about the wireless connection stopping midway when you're busy chatting with someone. Keep in mind though that if it is an increase in speed is what you want you might want to check out the speed up your wireless connection post.

If you're experiencing connection issues then it is usually one of the following problems:

Wi-Fi Channel - Usually if several users are using the same channel in the same wireless frequency, the connection between the router and the user will always be disrupted by some other person's radio waves.

This is a common occurrence in Apartment buildings and areas where there are a lot of wireless hot-spots. To fix this problem take a look at the how to speed up your wi-fi connection post.

Distance between router and computer - If your laptop or computer is too far from your wireless router your connection will obviously suffer. Along with that, if you happen to have a lot of walls (or even worse steel/iron re-enforcements between the walls) your connection will gradually attenuate over time. The best way to fight this is buy a wireless range extender that will regenerate the signals so they can travel further.
Cordless Phones and Microwaves - Yup, your cordless phones and microwaves can actually cause disruptions in your wireless network. This is because they too usually use the same frequency (2.4 GHz which can be either called 802.11 b (old standard) 802.11 g (current standard) or 802.11 n (new standard)) as your router does.

So the best way to solve this is either get rid of your phone or get a router that broadcasts information on another frequency such as 5 GHz. Keep in mind though that your hardware, i.e. your laptop must also be compatible with a 5 GHz (802.11 a) router. Most modern laptops usually have support for this, but if you have an older laptop or a wireless card this might not work. In that case you'll have to replace the cordless phone and get one that runs on the 5 GHz frequency.

Router or wireless card problems - Last but not least, the problem might actually lie in your router or wireless card. The best way to check this is to test it with alternative hardware. For example if you suspect the router has problems take it to a friends house and test it out. The same can be done for the laptop, where you can take it to someone else's house and make sure it works right.

You might also want to do a quick search on the internet to find out if other people are experiencing the same kind of problems with the specific brand/model of router or wireless device you have.

Encrypt and secure your network - This is the step that most people neglect. Many don't even know what encryption is. If you are one of those people then you'd better catch up. You can take a look at my wireless security tips post to ensure you know how to encrypt your network.

Encryption prevents people from stealing your internet or messing around with your network. And of course doing so will certainly hinder the speed of the network. Therefore, you're better of setting an administrator password on your router and using at least WPA encryption.
If all instances mentioned above fail to cure the problem, post a comment and I'll do my best to reply as soon as possible.

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5 ways to speed up and improve your wireless network for free

First off I need to mention that I live in an apartment complex, and getting wireless to work properly is extremely hard, and I guess I can say that I've learnt a lot form tweaking it so much. Recently I read a similar article on Microsoft's website, but most of the stuff in there is impractical. All they seem to say is upgrade all your devices and buy more stuff.

So here are 5 tips that are guaranteed to make your wireless connection work better for free. These "tweaks" can be performed in most settings and it shouldn't be a much of a problem to implement in your home or even office network. Make sure you secure your wireless network too though.

1. Find the right channel for your router. First make sure that you don't have any cordless phone in your own house that might be causing interference. If you find that your wireless connection gets weaker whenever you get a call, try changing the channel on your cordless phone. Then download net stumbler on one of your computers with a wireless card (it should work with most cards). Open it and check what channel other people are broadcasting on. People will usually be using either channel 1, 6 or 11, so try to stay away from these channels, but you never know. Then change your router's channel to some other channel no one else is using. You'll need to know how to work with the router configuration page to do this.Keep in mind though that other people might have cordless phones running on the same channel which might interfere with the your signal, so you'll have to use the trial and error method to find the perfect channel.
2. Switch to OpenDNS. Although this tip is more of a improve your "Internet speed" tip, its still good for getting better speeds through your wireless network. And since most people use their wireless network for Internet, I recommend replacing your ISP's dns service with OpenDNS. Instructions on how to configure your router to use OpenDNS can be found on their website. Basically its just copying and pasting a couple of IP addresses, so I won't mention how to do that here.
3. Move your router. Yes, although this is pretty self explanatory, most people ignore this tip. Try to move your router to a central location in your home. Although this might be kind of hard, since you're bound by the location of your high speed modem, phone line or even your cable line, its not always impossible. You don't have to move the router from one room to another, just moving it from one side to another side of the room should suffice. All you need to do is get 2 long pieces of Ethernet cable, it doesn't matter which kind since most routers have "wire management" so it'll accept any kind of cat-5 crossover, rollover or straight through cable and use that instead of short cables. This will enable you to move your router so that it is a bit more closer to the center of your home or closer to your laptop if you only use a laptop.
4. Change your wireless card settings. Most wireless cards are configured to the default settings of using wireless QoS and so on, so you'll want to tweak it to make it interface faster with the network. To start tweaking first press the Windows + Pause Break key if you are on Windows > Go to the hard ware tab > Click on Device Manager > Under Network Adaptors double click on your wireless and go to the Advanced tab. Here's what you can tweak on most cards:
   • Mixed more protection - Use CTS-to-self. This will make the speed faster since you are in a small home network
   • Power Management - Use the highest value, because this will make your card work faster. You might want to choose a medium or low setting if you want extended battery life though.
   • Roaming Aggressiveness - Use either the medium or lowest value in a home setting, so that your card won't keep searching for new connections, it'll just stay happy with the network in your home and won't connect to your neighbour's network.
   • Throughput Enhancement - Make sure you enable throughput enhancement to have the fastest speeds
   • Transmit Power - Use the highest option to connect to your network properly and get the fastest speeds
5. Update drivers/firmware and maintain your network. Here are a couple of things you should do with your network:
1. Update your drivers for your wireless card (usually found on the manufacturer's website) and the firmware on your router. Go to the manufacturer's website to get the latest firmware. Instructions on updating your firmware can also be found there.
2. Give your network a unique SSID and encrypt it! Why? Because your neighbour might be accidentally using your connection and making it slower, or someone might be using your network to download stuff on the Internet... so it is best to give your network a unique SSID and use at least WPA encryption if WPA2 isn't a choice. More instructions on that coming soon...
3. Make sure to also change the password to the router so that some one else does not modify the setting. I recommend setting a big password so it is impossible to crack.
4. Make sure your laptop and the router are using the 802.11 (wi-fi) G standard. Sometimes, if your laptop is set to use only wi-fi 802.11 B, even though it supports G, your router will only communicate to it using B, and not G which is way faster.

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