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Open
wireless networks
Convenience could
mean trouble
Many people don't know
what happens to their
usernames, passwords,
and personal email
messages when using
public wireless
networks. This data
often travels freely
through the air in
clear text. Worse, it
is very simple for
someone else on that
same network to
intercept your
information and use it
against you for their
own benefit.
Many conferences are
now widely known for
having open wireless
networks available to
hundreds of attendees
at the same time.
Cafes, bookstores, and
public libraries offer
free or pay-per-use
wireless hotspots. The
amount of data and
personal information
traveling freely
though the air is at
an all-time high.
The majority of these
wireless networks are
configured with the
lowest possible
security settings, so
that customers can
connect to the network
as easy and
trouble-free as
possible. This allows
just about anyone with
a wireless-capable
laptop computer to
walk into a cafe, grab
a cup of coffee, and
start browsing or
checking their email
immediately.
What you may not
realize is how easy
these low security
settings allow someone
else on the same
network to spy on the
data passing around on
that network. Just
because you’re the
only person who can
see your laptop
screen, doesn’t
necessarily mean
you’re the only one
who can see the email
message you just got
from a friend. Just as
easily as someone
could sit near you in
a quiet cafe or
library and overhear
your entire verbal
conversation with
another person, so
could they “listen in”
on all the usernames,
passwords, and
messages passing to
and from your
computer.
Email Messages
Easy access to
usernames and
passwords
If you’re not doing
something to secure
your email, your
usernames, passwords,
and messages are most
likely traveling
through the air as
clear text. Plain,
unscrambled,
unencrypted,
easy-to-read-by-anyone
text. Anyone connected
to the same network
can “sniff” for data
passing through the
air, then grab and log
that data on their
computer. All without
you even knowing it.
You have no idea how
much of your digital
conversations are
being overheard.
Information is
traveling to and from
your computer in the
form of small packets.
Each time your
computer receives
those packets, it
reassembles them, and
displays the email you
received, or the web
page you’re trying to
view. Utilities called
'packet sniffers' can
detect or “sniff”
these packets of
information flying
around on the network,
collecting it for
analysis. System
Administrators use
packet sniffers and
network utilities to
monitor and
troubleshoot their own
networks. Now, packet
sniffers are widely
and freely available,
and are easy for
anyone to use.
Safeguarding your
information
Keeping your personal
information secure
There are many means
of safeguarding email
communication. They
each have varying
degrees of security
and capability.
Methods range from
access to a trusted
VPN, to secure
web-based email
applications (web
mail), to allowing
connections over SSL.
The good news is that
with Secure2Send you
can scramble this data
to make it completely
unintelligible, even
if someone else does
intercept it! Our
system provides all
the security and
accessibility required
to protect your most
important information
- without the expense
of a dedicated network
or other expensive
tools.
 Click
here for more
information
Click here to sign up
now
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