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How to Set up VPN on Smartphones

July 22, 2011 by Leave a Comment
For use on the English Wikipedia page LG Ally

Image via Wikipedia

A virtual private network (VPN) can be an excellent way for a business to operate. As it grows, it will need to connect locations in an efficient manner. Of course, this is where the VPN comes into play.

If your business uses a VPN to connect users, you can easily integrate it with your smartphone. As you likely use your smartphone for business purposes, this can be a great way to streamline matters. From your new LG Android phone to other devices, you can connect via your smartphone.

Set up your profile by accessing networking settings, and create a new VPN profile on your device. You will then enter a name, description, and the VPN credentials needed to access the network. Check with the system administrator if you need help connecting to the network.

Depending on the device and network, you may need to enter other information. For instance, be ready to enter the IP address of the server, appropriate account/password values, and other elements. Again, your administrator can help you in regard to your smartphone. After you have set up the VPN profile, you can log off and on at will – make sure you save the profile.

While there will be many differences for devices and VPN-specific settings, you should be able to set it up without too many problems. Contact your administrator or the manufacturer or the smartphone for more information and if you need troubleshooting. Once the VPN is set up, you will be able to realize the convenience of accessing it on your mobile device.

Filed Under: Computer, Internet, Security Tagged With: , ,

Ways to Work Effectively at Home

July 15, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Working from home is a dream come true if you know how to do it effectively. In order to be a successful work-from-home businessperson there are few tips you’ll need to follow.

Have the Right Tools for Your Home Office

In order to have an effective home office, you have to invest in the right office tools. Chances are you’ll be telecommuting, so you’ll need a reliable internet connection. You’ll also need the best computer you can get, as well as the right kinds of software to do the job. Canada 411 is a good place to start if you need to do some office preparation. Here’s what to look for.

  • Reliable and affordable internet service
  • A computer with a large amount of memory and fast processors
  • An external hard drive to back up and save your work
  • The proper software and office suite for your kind of work
  • An all-in-one printer/fax/scanner

Working From Home Requires Discipline

  • Turn off Facebook. It will distract you!
  • Set a schedule for work and stick to it.
  • Make sure your family respects that schedule.
  • Don’t become a reclusive workaholic.
  • Make sure you get up and exercise, spend time with friends and family, and simply relax.
  • Leave your house every day.
  • Be fast, accurate and responsive with your clients.

One of the benefits of working in an office setting is we automatically jump into the work mode and actually do what we’re supposed to do. When working from home, the lines blur, and we can be come very ineffective. Therefore, it’s important to prepare our offices and our minds for work at home success.

Filed Under: Internet Tagged With: , ,

Running Your Business Made Easier

July 8, 2011 by Leave a Comment
Picture of Samsung Moment cell phone with scre...

Image via Wikipedia

As your business expands and you move your customer communication out of the office and into the mobile world, you’ll need to make sure you have the right mobile device to conduct transactions and communication in a safe and secure environment. Virtual Private Networks are a must to insure that the information you exchange from your mobile devices stays safe and secure.  Actually, VPNs are not new to mobile technology. As soon as people were able to send and receive email via their cell phones, mobile networks had to be secure.

Is Your Cell Phone Compatible?

Before you invest in a new smartphone, there are a few things you should consider.

  • Will the VPN Client you’re using install and run properly on the mobile phone you’re considering?
  • Does your cell phone have enough memory to download large files?
  • What type of information will you need to transmit over a private network?
  • How secure is your cell phone’s operating system?
  • What anti-virus programs work best?

Should You Choose the Phone or the VPN?

One way to experiment with various VPNs and cell phone compatibilities is to purchase prepaid plans for the phone. Certain hardware and technology may reveal itself to be the best fit for your business.

The other thing to consider is whether you need to choose the right phone or the right virtual private network. Many experts would suggest testing the VPN with the cell phone and not the other way around.  This is likely good advice, so if it seems a little foreign, find the cell phone that feels best for you, and then seek expert advice on the best way to make the networks secure.

Filed Under: Internet, Local Networks Tagged With: , ,

Virtual Private Network and the Office

May 22, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Virtual private networking has been publicized in the media a great deal lately, and not all of the publicity has been good. Many people feel that virtual networks are the cause of deterioration of communication between people within the work place. However, many people in the professional world swear by the new technology. No matter what the opinion of virtual networking, the technology seems be here to stay so a look at what the networking is doing for business is important.

Virtual networking is a fancy name for sharing secure information quickly and efficiently over computer networks. For many companies who have multiple business locations or positions where traveling is involved they rely on the virtual networks to spread information safely. The virtual private network is a private network that uses the internet to connect users together so that anywhere where the internet is used information can be sent.

The professional world is incredibly pleased with this technology because of the way that documents can be sent. Rather than have to specialty mail documents or have a trusted carrier relay the documents, documents can be transferred almost immediately and with complete security. This is very important when dealing with proposals, bank documents or other secure information.

While many people feel that using the technology will cause a breakdown in communication between the sender and recipient of the information being sent, many other people feel that because the technology is able to send information quicker any problems or misunderstands between companies can be resolved quickly as well.

Filed Under: Computer, Internet, Networks, Private Networks, Security Tagged With: , ,

Setting Up a VPN on an iPhone Part 2

March 20, 2011 by Leave a Comment

The iPhone is a smartphone that can do a number of things and almost act as if it were a computer. One of the amazing things that it can do is connect to a company’s virtual private network to allow employees access to their emails, files and the company server. Once the virtual private networking setting has been set onto an iPhone there will be a number of things that you will need to input into your iPhone to allow it to connect to a VPN. Here is a look at those things that need to be inputted into the phone’s setting.

Encryption Style. You will need to choose the type of encryption that will go with your iPhone. This will depend on the type of VPN that you are setting up. The options will include L2TP, PPTP and IPSec. If you are unsure which one you need contact the system administrator of the VPN.

Description. You will need to name your network. You can name it whatever you like and will remember.

IP Address. You will need to enter the IP address that is associated with the VPN server. This goes into the server section of the prompt. In most cases the IP address is the public IP address assigned to the computer.

Username and Password. Everyone is assigned a username and password to a VNP. You will need to enter these into the accounting field. However, if you want to sign in every time leave the password part blank.

Filed Under: Internet, Software Tagged With: , ,

Requirements for Setting up a Virtual Private Network

March 7, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Virtual private networking has become increasingly popular over the years as more and more companies are allowing their employees to telecommute. These employees still need access to the computer network that the company has but it does not need to have the employees directly in one place. Instead, through virtual private network connections employees are able to access the network via a secure network using their own Internet connection.

In order to set up a virtual private network for yourself or your employees there are a few system requirements that you will need. Here is a list of the requirements for the computer system.

VPN Endpoints. In order to establish a virtual private network you will need to have what is considered a virtual private network endpoint. There are several options for these endpoints and the amount of endpoints that are needed depends on whether it is a site to site connection or just a one sided connection. Options include consumer grade routers or a network’s firewall.

VPN Client. You will also be required to have software or a computer that has a virtual private networking solution set up for their computer. Windows PCs come complete with a virtual private networking solution already installed. All that needs to be done is have a network created under the create a new network connection. For non-Windows computers you will need to install a software that will allow you to create a new network for the virtual private network.

Compatible Protocols. Both parts of the network will require the use of either a layer two tunneling protocol or a point to point tunneling protocol. Both client computers and the host computer need to support these protocols so that the computers can connect to each other.

Filed Under: Internet, Networks Tagged With: , ,

How Online Casinos are Protecting Their Players from Hackers

January 21, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Just as thieves scheme and plot methods of stealing cash from casinos in Las Vegas and Atlantic City, they also try to come up with ways to hack into online casinos. Each online casino’s cashier system works day in and day out handling the financial transfers of the site’s players. Players come to play and don’t want to worry whether a hacker will have their credit card or bank account information via their favorite online casino. Naturally, online casinos are aware of security concerns and provide many types of protection for their customers.

Casinos use Secure Socket Layer, or SSL, encryption procedures as a dominant precautionary measure. By using SSL, players’ personal information is jumbled up using computer codes that make the information nearly indecipherable to hackers who may intercept the transmission. Most online casinos have taken to using the latest, most recently developed SSL encryption to protect their players. Personal information is stored on the servers of the online casino, and there is adequate protection.

Firewalls are in place to protect servers from unauthorized access. Strict regulations allow only senior casino staff to have access to information stored on the servers via a series of passwords. Every keystroke made by any casino staff member is recorded and can be reviewed for misconduct. Security systems embedded inside a casino’s software are designed by an outside firm like VeriSign, whose security systems are tested and verified by outside sources. Players may only access the casino through a username and password that only the player knows. Reputable casinos require players to have an individual account and personal identification number that must be used when withdrawing winnings from the casino. For players’ safety, many casinos automatically log players out when they navigate away from the site. For personal security, all players should deactivate the ability for their favorite online casino to “remember” their log in name and password.

Filed Under: Hardware, Internet Tagged With: , , , , , , ,

Information Packets – Sending Your Data Through Your VPN

January 13, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Information to be transferred through a virtual private network is never sent as an entire block of information. This would increase communications problems on the Internet, increase the possibility of information becoming lost, and also make that information available for others to trap and access in route. Instead, the data being transferred is broken down into packets, which are then sent through the Internet.

A packet of information consists of a block of user information (called the payload) wrapped in the necessary control information used by the packet preparation and reception software. A checksum is used instead of standard parity checking to insure the accuracy of data transmission.  Additional information about the sender and receiver, packeting protocol used, information priority, and how that packet is to be re-assembled at its destination.

Individual packets may travel through the Internet by different routes; all of them arriving at the destination to be reassembled, stripped of the control information, and presented to the receiving computer as if it had just been handed-off through internal communications. Even if information is lost or corrupted in transit, it doesn’t cause a problem for the users. Control software automatically recognizes the problem as the data is being reassembled and requests that the missing or corrupted information be resent.

There are a number of different packeting protocols and programs available for use by your company. As with any other software choice, there are tradeoffs in deciding which one to use. Your Information Technology department is best able to sort through all the differences in these programs and protocols to determine which would provide the best service for your company’s needs.

It is this packeting capability that makes it possible to utilize public communications networks, such as the Internet to create a virtual private network. Otherwise, the sheer volume of information sent as a single block from a company’s remote location to their main office might be enough to disrupt overall communications on part of the Internet.

 

Filed Under: Internet Tagged With:

Keeping Your Image Clean in the Internet Age

January 8, 2011 by Leave a Comment

Now, with the Internet providing information all the time no matter where you are or what you want to know, there can be issues with a business’ image. If you want to keep your image strong and healthy, instead of seeing it tarnished by bloggers and others who just don’t like you, damage control is necessary. You can’t stop people from saying bad things about you if they really want to, but you also don’t have to give them any fuel for the fire. In other words, if you don’t do things wrong, they won’t have much to talk about.

In order to stay on the good side of your customers, you should know what they’re saying about you. To find that out, you need to provide customers with surveys to fill out. There are all kinds of survey tools you can get involved with. Most of them can be done online, and that’s the best way to find out what your customers think. It’s also inexpensive and doesn’t take very long. You can collect the results, analyze them, and learn what your customers really think about you and your business. Even if some of the responses aren’t what you hope to hear, don’t be discouraged. At least you know where you need to improve.

Improving your business could mean making a few simple changes, or it could mean doing some major overhauling. Most businesses fall somewhere in between those two extremes. If you’re one of them, the time to start taking surveys and making changes is now. The sooner you get started the sooner you’ll be able to make the kinds of changes your customers will appreciate – and talk about online. You’ll be able to improve your online reputation, which means that you have the potential to pull in even more customers, building your business and making it stronger than ever.

Filed Under: Internet Tagged With: ,

3 Questions for VPN Providers

December 21, 2010 by Leave a Comment

When you are considering a VPN, or virtual private network, for your company’s internet connections, consider these three questions before committing to a specific company. Taking the time to do your research now will benefit you later.

First how secure is the system. Various VPN providers have differing security protocols. Some provide top-notch security that will make it difficult for anyone to get into the network. These systems cost more money, of course. Moving downward, there are some options that probably aren’t needed for most people. You will need to find the security protocols that are right for your system.

The second question for you to ask is how the traffic is tunneled to your network. Because VPNs are not regulated, there are various traffic flow methods that company employ. The tunneling method used can effect speed, so be sure to ask for details.

Also find out about how the VPN is accessed. Do you simply need internet service? Will you be able to use your laptop? Or will the network be connected to certain computers, such as terminals at the client or satellite office? Either option is fine; deciding is a matter of knowing your company’s needs.

Knowing how VPN set-ups work is a tedious, technical job, but it pays for you to read up on the networks first before you commit to a specific provider. Ask these questions and see where the responses go. Representatives from a quality company will have no problem walking you through the answers to each question, giving you responses that you understand and that help you feel more comfortable.

Keep in mind that your company’s integrity is on the line, and in an electronic world, allowing access to this information could be devastating. You need to choose a VPN provider with a solid reputation for safeguarding information.

Filed Under: Computer, Internet Tagged With: , ,
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