noelward
Well-known member
Got VPN?
By Noel Ward, Editor@Large
Just because you’re not paranoid doesn’t mean someone isn’t out to get you. And there are now more ways to get you than ever. Printers are visible targets and if you haven’t done so already you should take some steps to say safe.
On the business level the bad guys, following the money, can go after accounting and client info, plus personnel files where snagging names, addresses and social security numbers makes a for nice diversion at 2 AM. At home, attacks and intrusions via the internet can reach into bank accounts, credit cards and tax info. While such intrusions may seem unlikely it’s worth taking basic steps to keep the bad guys out. One place to start is with your IP (internet protocol) address.
Your IP address identifies your computer and the location of the host (a server, for example) in your network. The IP address is part of a path in your network. All the devices on your network have an IP address, and the first internet-connected device turned on each morning can make your network very visible. But suppose your IP address were hidden so a would-be attacker cannot reach it. I wrote here last month about ransomware. One of the ways of planting that stuff is via your IP address.
VPN to the Rescue
One basic way to keep the bad guys out is with a VPN, or Virtual Private Network. Many of you may already use one but for those who don't here's what you're missing. While not perfect or all inclusive, VPNs make your IP address more difficult to access by way of encryption. Encryption requires “keys,” a numerical sequence that makes information readable. The better VPNs can provide AES-256 (Advanced Encryption Standard) that challenges even the NSA. While there are reports that the NSA may be able to crack AES-256 on one layer of a double VPN, a second layer is (so far) not possible. Of course, people like us probably don’t have much to worry about as we are just protecting personal and business information. The guys going after your cash are most likely small-time crooks, maybe closer to home, and lack the computing power to crack strong encryption. But they can still harm your business, which is the point of this piece.
An AES-256-bit key requires selecting the correct 256-character-long sequence of random binary digits, either 1 or 0. (that’s choosing from the equivalent of 2 to the 256th power.) Because the key can be totally random, this is beyond what even supercomputers can handle. This may change when quantum computers become widely available, but that’s probably a few years away. For now, the random nature of the key ensures that each possible combination of the 256-character key is equally likely, making it virtually impossible for an attacker to guess the key. Even one error in the string of binary bits and the key fails.
Because few connections to the internet are truly safe, having a VPN at your home and in your business can be a good basic approach. Add your cell phone too, especially if you use it for email, purchases, and more. By the way, the bad guy accessing the joint checking account you have with your wife doesn’t know or care that he got into it when the balance happened to be low: he’ll take whatever he can get. Same thing when he taps your company checking account a few days before payday.
One way it can work
My normal internet connection “knows” where I am, which is not near much. But when I connect through the VPN it appears that I’m in a different location. A couple days ago the VPN placed me in Denmark, so when searching for a product, I got links to stores in Copenhagen. Another time I could not connect to Amazon Prime Video because what I wanted to watch was not available in the country where my VPN ‘said’ I was. When I connect though a VPN server in New York City (for example) and go to the Home Depot site, I get links to stores in New Jersey or Long Island. Fortunately I can change the location the VPN uses with a couple of clicks.
Don’t cheap out
VPNs live in the cloud but don’t be tempted by the free ones. These are often “anonymizers” that hide your IP address and lack the level of encryption provided by a real VPN. As noted above,
heavy-duty encryption is important.
There are a few top contenders, not free but all inexpensive. A friend with three degrees in computer science recommended NORD VPN, which I use, and it has AES-256 encryption. A few others are just as good. Costs a few dollars a month. It protects my business computers, printers and network, and does the same at home it does the same for my wife’s computer, printers and phone. A VPN is not ironclad protection but it beats making it easy for some weenie to hack my network.
On a purely cautionary and unrelated note that goes beyond the VPN, its a good to not have your credit and debit cards resident on your phone. Yeah, I know it’s convenient to pay with a tap of the phone but it’s also very convenient for thieves. True story: A friend was mugged when her phone was on. All the perp wanted was her live phone. He quickly got her credit and debit card info, drained her bank accounts and charged some stuff on her credit cards before she could get to another phone or computer to lock or erase her phone. It was more or less salvageable but she learned the hard way not to have much info on her phone, especially the “convenient” login on her bank website that let her avoid entering the complex password she thought kept her safe.
You do what you can
It’s getting harder all the time to keep those seeking to do you harm out of your computer system. It requires an ongoing effort and there is no perfect way to shield your system from all threats all the time. There are still things you can do and a VPN is a basic way of protecting yourself.
By Noel Ward, Editor@Large
Just because you’re not paranoid doesn’t mean someone isn’t out to get you. And there are now more ways to get you than ever. Printers are visible targets and if you haven’t done so already you should take some steps to say safe.
On the business level the bad guys, following the money, can go after accounting and client info, plus personnel files where snagging names, addresses and social security numbers makes a for nice diversion at 2 AM. At home, attacks and intrusions via the internet can reach into bank accounts, credit cards and tax info. While such intrusions may seem unlikely it’s worth taking basic steps to keep the bad guys out. One place to start is with your IP (internet protocol) address.
Your IP address identifies your computer and the location of the host (a server, for example) in your network. The IP address is part of a path in your network. All the devices on your network have an IP address, and the first internet-connected device turned on each morning can make your network very visible. But suppose your IP address were hidden so a would-be attacker cannot reach it. I wrote here last month about ransomware. One of the ways of planting that stuff is via your IP address.
VPN to the Rescue
One basic way to keep the bad guys out is with a VPN, or Virtual Private Network. Many of you may already use one but for those who don't here's what you're missing. While not perfect or all inclusive, VPNs make your IP address more difficult to access by way of encryption. Encryption requires “keys,” a numerical sequence that makes information readable. The better VPNs can provide AES-256 (Advanced Encryption Standard) that challenges even the NSA. While there are reports that the NSA may be able to crack AES-256 on one layer of a double VPN, a second layer is (so far) not possible. Of course, people like us probably don’t have much to worry about as we are just protecting personal and business information. The guys going after your cash are most likely small-time crooks, maybe closer to home, and lack the computing power to crack strong encryption. But they can still harm your business, which is the point of this piece.
An AES-256-bit key requires selecting the correct 256-character-long sequence of random binary digits, either 1 or 0. (that’s choosing from the equivalent of 2 to the 256th power.) Because the key can be totally random, this is beyond what even supercomputers can handle. This may change when quantum computers become widely available, but that’s probably a few years away. For now, the random nature of the key ensures that each possible combination of the 256-character key is equally likely, making it virtually impossible for an attacker to guess the key. Even one error in the string of binary bits and the key fails.
Because few connections to the internet are truly safe, having a VPN at your home and in your business can be a good basic approach. Add your cell phone too, especially if you use it for email, purchases, and more. By the way, the bad guy accessing the joint checking account you have with your wife doesn’t know or care that he got into it when the balance happened to be low: he’ll take whatever he can get. Same thing when he taps your company checking account a few days before payday.
One way it can work
My normal internet connection “knows” where I am, which is not near much. But when I connect through the VPN it appears that I’m in a different location. A couple days ago the VPN placed me in Denmark, so when searching for a product, I got links to stores in Copenhagen. Another time I could not connect to Amazon Prime Video because what I wanted to watch was not available in the country where my VPN ‘said’ I was. When I connect though a VPN server in New York City (for example) and go to the Home Depot site, I get links to stores in New Jersey or Long Island. Fortunately I can change the location the VPN uses with a couple of clicks.
Don’t cheap out
VPNs live in the cloud but don’t be tempted by the free ones. These are often “anonymizers” that hide your IP address and lack the level of encryption provided by a real VPN. As noted above,
heavy-duty encryption is important.
There are a few top contenders, not free but all inexpensive. A friend with three degrees in computer science recommended NORD VPN, which I use, and it has AES-256 encryption. A few others are just as good. Costs a few dollars a month. It protects my business computers, printers and network, and does the same at home it does the same for my wife’s computer, printers and phone. A VPN is not ironclad protection but it beats making it easy for some weenie to hack my network.
On a purely cautionary and unrelated note that goes beyond the VPN, its a good to not have your credit and debit cards resident on your phone. Yeah, I know it’s convenient to pay with a tap of the phone but it’s also very convenient for thieves. True story: A friend was mugged when her phone was on. All the perp wanted was her live phone. He quickly got her credit and debit card info, drained her bank accounts and charged some stuff on her credit cards before she could get to another phone or computer to lock or erase her phone. It was more or less salvageable but she learned the hard way not to have much info on her phone, especially the “convenient” login on her bank website that let her avoid entering the complex password she thought kept her safe.
You do what you can
It’s getting harder all the time to keep those seeking to do you harm out of your computer system. It requires an ongoing effort and there is no perfect way to shield your system from all threats all the time. There are still things you can do and a VPN is a basic way of protecting yourself.
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