Computers

Q: What are three ways to protect the information on your computer screen from being seen by the public or other employees who do not need to see it?
A: Turn the screen away from public view. Use a password-protected screen saver that pops up after a few minutes of idle time and hides the information. Log off when you leave the area.

Q: Why is it important to log off when you leave your computer, even if no one else is around?
A: Even at the end of the day, others may be in the area and gain access to a system using your ID and you may be held responsible for any unauthorized access to information.

Q: What is a firewall?
A: A firewall is a sub-system of computer software and hardware that intercepts data packets before allowing them in to or out of a Local Area Network. All traffic passing through the firewall is examined and controlled. Once checked, the traffic is then passed to it's destination.

The idea is to prevent unauthorized access to or from your internal network. A firewall will implement a security policy which is defined for the site it is protecting.

Using this policy the firewall can then make a decision as to whether data meeting these requirements can get through to the internal network.