Do you know if your home Internet connection is safe?

Virus outbreaks in Linux systems, attacks utilizing open source code, breaks into home computers and the increasing activity of Asian virus writers have been the latest threats faced by the computer-using world. There are estimated to be a staggering 80,000 known computer viruses in existence today.

More and more people work from home and every thirteenth household in Europe has a broadband connection (source: Strategy Analytics). The Internet is used at home for anything from paying bills to travel reservations and data searching. Youngsters spend a large part of their free time in front of a computer, communicating via the Internet. In addition to computer viruses, the other major threat is the misuse of others’ computers over the Internet. Hacking for the sake of fun is increasing all the time. A typical outcome of this kind of free-riding is that a home computer is used to distribute illegal or dubious material without the owner knowing about it.

Awareness of the security threat among the general public is growing, but there is much to be done. The majority of home PCs remain unprotected or, even if they have the requisite security software, it is likely not up to date, or is incorrectly configured. Home users have many questions that rightly need to be answered, such as what and where to buy, how much to pay, and how to make sure everything is up to date at all times.

Traditional security software solutions like antivirus and personal firewall are often too complicated for home users to install and manage. Far too many Netizens have old software versions and outdated virus definition databases. Users simply forget to update if the process needs to be done manually, or they are not connected to the Internet when scheduled updates are expected to run. Either way, the user is left with an unsecured system and is highly vulnerable to threats.

ISPs have begun taking an active role in providing security to their residential customers, though the development of such offerings varies a great deal between markets. There are various ways of supplying security software to the desktop and a good number of ISPs still use traditional methods of delivery. These include the provision of manufactured, boxed, stand-alone software. In some cases, the ISPs cut their own CDs to include the relevant software. The software, of course, will only be as current as the day it is made.


Copyright Deutshe Telecom AG

F-Secure’s subscription-based security delivery concept, specifically developed for ISPs, has been proven to be a success by many leading European Service Providers. The solution allows an ISP to deliver automated, easy-to-use desktop security to its residential and small business markets directly over the Internet in an extremely cost-efficient manner. F-Secure’s current ISP partners include, among others, Deutsche Telekom, France Telecom’s ISP Wanadoo and TeliaSonera, who service both the Swedish and Finnish markets. End-users do not have to worry about outdated virus definition databases or actual security software updates. After the simple installation procedure, everything is automatic and updates are performed transparently no matter where and when the connection to the Internet was made.

Please read more:
http://www.F-Secure.com/solutions/sp.shtml
http://www.F-Secure.com/products/pex/enduser-benefits.shtml


Author: Kalle Korpi, Sales Manager


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