Many places offer WiFi connection to their patrons, free with the services or goods offered at the location. However, unless you have made certain that the connection is entirely secure, then you may be putting your precious data at risk. It is simple to log onto the internet at any local fast food restaurant or coffee shop. Despite this, you have to use caution to be sure that you will be assured of your Wireless Security and safety while you are at that location. There are several ways to do this when using wireless networks outside of the home either on your laptop or any other device.

The best way to do this is to only log into wireless networks that have a user name and password, such as is offered occasionally on free networks where you log-on as a guest. This guarantees that the network has at least some significant measures of security. However, finding a location with a log-in of this nature may not always be possible. Another way to assure your safety is to ask the manager or the person in charge of the internet if the system is using a wireless intrusion protection system (WIPS). WIPS is the best way to protect yourself when using a free wireless network from your portable computer, because it blocks out many hackers and other damaging things from getting onto the network easily.

There are also many ways to protect your home WiFi system that people frequently overlook. Lack of security allows hackers to access computers and personal information, so that even while you are safely sitting at home, someone may be stealing from you. Many people use the ÒWEPÓ locking system for their home network or no lock at all. Unfortunately, this is not a good protection system at this point, as using no lock allows your neighbors to use your internet for free and lets anyone who wants to get into and infect your network with spam or spyware or malware. WEP password systems are easily cracked by anyone who really wants to get in, so this standard locking system is really of only little uses.

A better locking system than WEP is WPAv1, wireless protected access. This system provides significantly better security than the average WEP system. It is not perfect, however, it can still be cracked by a dedicated hacker, but with significantly more trouble than cracking a WEP network. All routers that can accommodate WEP can accommodate WPA without any additional hardware, which makes it very attractive to many wireless network owners. If you have a home wireless network and you are not using a locking system or are using WEP, it is highly recommended that you switch to WPA.

The newest and best system for wireless internet security that has come out is 802.11i security. It does require new hardware to use this system, unlike WPA. However, it is considerably more secure. Because it is new, there are fewer programs that can be used to crack the system. If having a safe wireless system is extremely important to you, then purchasing the hardware for 802.11i security may be a very good investment.