CompTIA’s Network+ certification Study Guide part 3 is a globally-recognized, vendor neutral exam that has helped over 235,000 IT professionals reach further and higher in their careers. The 2009 Network+ exam (N10-004) is a major update with more focus on security and wireless aspects of networking. Our new study guide has been updated accordingly with focus on network, systems, and WAN security and complete coverage of today’s wireless networking standards. | 6 CHAPTER 1 Network Fundamentals NOTES FROM THE FIELD. Knowledgeable Network Users The Internet is a vast network of interconnected computers that your computer becomes a part of whenever it goes online. Because more people than ever before use the Internet this means that many people are familiar with the basic concepts and features of networking without even being aware of it. This is a particular benefit in training the users of a network as many will be familiar with using e-mail having user accounts and passwords and other technologies or procedures. Unfortunately a little knowledge can also be a dangerous thing. When dealing with knowledgeable users it is important to realize that they may have developed bad habits. After all a user with years of experience will have found a few shortcuts and may have gotten lazy in terms of security. For example the user may use easy-to-remember passwords that are easy to guess. In such a case the solution would be to implement policies on using strong passwords passwords with at least eight characters consisting of numbers upper and lowercase letters and non-alphanumeric characters changing passwords regularly and not sharing passwords with others. If your company has an intranet you can provide information on such policies to employees. Another problem is that users may attempt to perform actions that aren t permitted in an organization such as installing unapproved software or accessing restricted data. It is also important to setup security on a network so users can only access what they need to perform their job. This minimizes the chance that someone might modify or delete a file view sensitive materials that are meant to be confidential or install software that contains malicious programming or isn t work related such as games . Even in an environment with a trusting atmosphere accidents happen and problems arise. Setting up proper security can prevent avoidable incidents from occuring. massive changes in the later .
