Homeland Security a Good Career Choice

Homeland security has turned into big business in the U.S. With several new job openings and the chance to work in a personally rewarding industry, homeland security makes an excellent career choice. The basic ingredients for a successful career go far beyond hard work and discipline. Planning is necessary to decide on a career that will satisfy a variety of personal and professional considerations. These considerations include educational opportunities, the availability of jobs both now and in the future, salary requirements and of course, and the nature of the work itself. Some people are less concerned with the nature of the actual work and are strictly financially motivated. Some fields are highly competitive in regard to job opportunities while others are experiencing unprecedented growth. Some fields require substantially more than a standard bachelor's degree while others require little education at all. In short, these considerations must be weighed when deciding on a career path to follow. Homeland security is a field that offers several benefits. In regard to educational opportunities, many colleges now offer degree programs in homeland security. These programs are designed to help graduates gain employment in the field by providing them with knowledge of the organizational structure of the various homeland security agencies and training them for the administrative aspects of supervisory positions. Many graduates go on to receive specialized training in law enforcement, investigations, immigration law, foreign policy and emergency management. In regard to job availability, the current and future employment outlook is well above average for all industries. In regard to salary requirements, positions in homeland security enjoy the same salaries as their non-industry counterparts with above average upward mobility. From administrators to file clerks, all employees who work for an agency that is supervised by the Department of Homeland Security are on the same pay scale that all federal employees are categorized under, yet often have more opportunities for advancement. The nature of the work involved in homeland security is as varying as the number of positions in the industry. Aside from covert operations or intelligence gathering, a career in homeland security is often similar to a career in any field one might choose. A human resources director for a Department of Homeland Security field office will perform the same tasks that a human resources director for a private company will perform. There is one substantial difference, however. Those who choose to work in the homeland security field will be rewarded with the respect and admiration that comes with protecting our great nation.

To learn more about a Homeland security degree visit our site http://www.degreesinhomelandsecurity.com/

To learn about earning a degree online visit http://www.searchforclasses.com

Catch up on that latest online education news at http:

Home Wireless Network Security Issues

Home Wireless Network Security Issues by Greg Lietz of http://about-wireless-internet.com

Running a business from home has its advantages, including no commute, a more accommodating work schedule, fresh coffee and home-cooked meals at any time you want.

But running a business from home using a home wireless local area network (WLAN) with your computer may lead to thievery of confidential information and hacker or virus penetration unless proper actions are taken. As WLANs send information back and forth over radio waves, someone with the right type of receiver in your immediate area could be picking up the transmission, thus acquiring access to your computer.

Here is a list of things that you should consider as a result of implementing a home wireless network setup used your business:

Viruses could be loaded onto your laptop which could be transferred to the company's network when you go back to work.

Up to 75 per cent of home wireless network WLAN users do not have standard security features installed, and 20 per cent are left completely open as default configurations and are not secured, but are made for the users to have their network up and running ASAP.

It is recommended that home wireless network router/access point system setups be always done though a wired client.

Always change the default administrative password on your home wireless network router/access points to a secured password.

Enable at least 128-bit WEP encryption on both card and access point. Change your WEP keys periodically. If equipment does not support at least 128-bit WEP encryption, consider replacing it. Although there are security issues with WEP, it represents minimum level of security, and it should be enabled.

Change the default SSID on your router/access point to a hard to guess name. Setup your computer device to connect to this SSID by default.

Setup router/access points so as to not broadcast the SSID. The same SSID needs to be setup on the client side manually. This feature may not be available on all equipment.

Setup your home wireless network router to block anonymous internet requests or pings.

On each computer having a wireless network card, network connection properties should be configured to allow connection to Access Point Networks Only. Computer to computer (peer to peer) connections should not be allowed.

Enable MAC filtering. Deny connection to wireless network for unspecified MAC addresses. MAC or physical addresses are accessible through your computer device wireless network connection setup and they are physically written on network cards. When adding new wireless cards / computer to the network, their MAC addresses should be registered with the router /access point.

Your home wireless network router should have firewall features enabled and demilitarized zone (DMZ) feature disabled. Periodically test your hardware and personal firewalls using Shields Up test available at http://www.grc.com. All computers should have a properly configured personal firewall in addition to a hardware firewall.

Update router/access point firmware when new versions become available.

Locate router/access points away from strangers so they cannot reset the router/access point to default settings. Also, locate router/access points in the middle of the building rather than near windows to limit signal coverage outside the building.

You should know that nothing is 100%. While none of the actions suggested above will provide full 100% protection, countermeasures do exist that will help. The good collection of suggested preventative actions contained herein can help you deter an intruder trying to access your home wireless network. This deterrant then makes other insecure networks easier targets for the intruder to persue.

Greg Lietz is an internet business man, freelance writer and computer enthusiast. His websites provide information on wireless internet networking and personal computer hardware that may be of interest to you.

The Importance of Home Security Alarms

The rise in the number of blue collar crimes including robbery, theft and holdups can make any house owner cringe when confronted with the thought of leaving his house unattended even for just a day. However, the thought that even occupied houses can be a target for thieves and robbers can make one more afraid and disgusted.

So how can homeowners be assured that they can sleep peacefully in their homes, or that they can leave their homes without having to worry abut thieves and robbers?

Setting up an alarm security for one?s abode may just be the way to go these days considering the rise in burglary. Alarm systems may be a little costly but as they say, one can never quantify one?s peace of mind. By setting up a home security alarm, you can at least be assured that when somebody tries to enter your house without permission, then you will be the first one to know and you can even thwart such an attempt.

There are various kinds of home security systems available for every household, and depending on one?s budget. No matte what kind of system you will install, these systems are meant to prevent breaking and entering an abode without the owner?s permission.

Home security alarm come sin different forms. There are alarm systems that are connected to wave sensors. Once these waive sensors detect movement in any part of the house where these are installed, it automatically connects to an alarm which sounds off to alert the homeowner and even to startle the thief. Sometimes, the alarm system works in such a way that when a motion is detected, the alarm is automatically connected to a local police station or a security agency.

Alarm systems can either be wired or connected to a control box, or they can be wireless or powered by batteries but are still connected to a box although without using any wires. A simple alarm system can be affordable for a small household but complicated alarm systems with monitors and other gadgets like a smoke system can be quite expensive.

When purchasing an alarm system for you homes, be sure that you have consulted an expert about its effectiveness. Also make sure that the alarm system has been installed properly or else it will defeat its purpose.

However, it is always advisable to become proactive rather than reactive. This means that you should always avoid any untoward incident from happening but if despite safety measures the said incident do happen, then you are prepared for it. Being reactive is installing ways to detect burglars but without making sure you have proper door locks and lighting fixtures in your home. Being proactive means you try to remove the chances of intruders being attracted to entering and breaking in your home by installing proper safety measures.

When installing alarm security systems, the homeowner should also install proper lighting throughout the house or the areas outside the house that may conveniently hide an intruder. While you are protected by a security alarm system, it is better to install basic safety fixtures like lighting and good door locks, discourage intruders from even attempting to enter your abode. This way, you do not only react to the possibility of an intruder entering your homes, but you also make sure that you discourage intruders from attempting to break in your abodes.

Read more Home Security Alarms at http://home-security.atozknowledge.com