Internet Security, Part II

In the last installment, we introduced you to the idea of internet security. Certainly, the internet has become an invaluable tool for almost everyone, even those who do not necessarily use it. However, along with any excellent tool, there are often great dangers. This is what we are discussing here. We also introduced several specific areas to be concerned with. In this installment, we will look at the dangers at home, work and school.

A more accurate title of this section might be ‘The Dangers in General’. I am addressing this group of dangers as what would be (or should be) the common sense approach to surfing. There are clear dangers out there and simple steps you need to take to protect yourself. In this section, I am going to look at some of the most basic steps you need to take to protect yourself and your computer.

A Firewall
A firewall is a device or piece of software that sits between your computer and the internet. The firewall (they are also often called a gateway or a router) intercepts all the internet traffic coming into your computer and determines if it is something you have asked for or not. If it is something you’ve asked for, it sends that data on to you. If not, it discards the data.
Simply, a firewall is important because it keeps all the bad stuff on the internet out of your computer. Without a firewall of some kind, it would be possible for someone to literally look into your computer, cause programs to run (or stop), delete or copy your data or even install programs you do not want on your computer. You can think of a firewall as something like the locked front door to your house. It’s purpose is to keep the bad people out.

Antivirus Software
First, what is a ‘virus’? A virus is a piece of software, a program, that has been installed on your computer, usually without your knowledge, that does something you don’t want it to do. Today, most virus software is used to send out junk email, but some viruses do many other things. There are many different antivirus products out there. Often, new computers will come with an antivirus program or a complete security suite. Most people do not realize that they must keep their security software up to date. Often, this involves purchasing a subscription from the company who made the security software. Without the subscription and the updates, the software is useless.

Antispyware Software
Spyware? What is that? Well spyware came about when people started looking for something on the internet for free. The ’free’ programs would track what you did on the internet and report that data back to ad companies. In effect, the programs were spying on you and thus the term, spyware. From that seemingly innocent start, spyware has become much more dangerous. Aside from accumulating data about your internet habits, spyware from criminals can collect your banking or other account information, documents, or anything else on your computer.

Anti-spyware software does just what it’s name implies. It prevents spyware from getting on your computer and, if necessary, removes spyware from your computer.
Filter Your Connection

Anything that comes into your computer should be checked. The firewall, antivirus software and antispyware software will do this to some degree, but there is another step of filtering you must take for the sake of your family and your ministry. You must filter your internet connection. This software does two things: First and foremost, it protects you from things you (and your family) should not see. Second, it is often true that sites with illegitimate content of any kind will also infect your computer with viruses or spyware.

A good filter can also be used to control access to the internet. Many filters will allow you to configure different user profiles and permissions based on those different profiles. So, as an example, the parent’s profile can be configured to surf anywhere the filter allows at any time while the teens can be set to only surf at certain times or certain sites (such as Teens-4-Christ).
A good filter will also keep a log of the internet activity (including chat conversations). I honestly believe that every parent, without exception, would be shocked to see their teen’s chat conversations. By the way, you are not intruding on their privacy, you are parenting.

Update Your Software
It seems that software changes on almost a daily basis. Every time a piece of software changes, it very possibly creates new problems. Often the changes are responses to problems someone else found. In either case, you almost always need to install the updates. If the software updates are security updates, you MUST install them.

Practice Safe Surfing
In general, nothing is free. If you see something you want on the internet, and it’s a free download, don’t download it. If it’s too good to be true, it probably is. Certainly, there are exceptions. In general, you can trust ‘open source’ software because it is developed by a community, but more about that later!
Generally, sites offering pornography will also attempt to install malware (viruses and spyware) on your computer.

The most obvious part of safe surfing is actually Biblical. You didn’t realize the Word of God actually addressed your internet activity, did you? 1Thessalonians 5:22 commands us saying, “Abstain from all appearance of evil.” The last, simplest and most obvious protection is to only surf in a public place. Put the computer in the living room. In the office, make sure the screen can be seen from the door when someone walks in the room.

So far, we have looked at the places you can control—your home and office, but what about the places you cannot control such as the friend’s house, school, the library and other public computers? You may not be able to control and monitor every computer in your city, but you do have control over every child that lives in your house.

Sadly, parents who believe there is a serious danger to be addressed in the internet, who properly protect their kids, are the exception. Recently, a youth pastor and I went into a teen’s home to confront him about some things. Initially, the parents were confident. They admitted the teen may have some Christian Rock, but they were convinced that was it. When the day was over, we had peeled back the layers and revealed the depth of the addiction to absolutely wicked music, the pornography and the damage the teen had done to a good fundamental ministry. At the conclusion of this visit, the parents were also quite shocked at the depths of sin to which their son had sank.

We are all tempted to do evil. We must ensure that we make absolutely no provision for the flesh! The internet is no exception.