An entire study session can become useless if the information being read is not readily absorbed. Not much learning happens in a boring study session. It needs to be more engaging and interesting for a student to easily grab the concepts being taught. Flashcards are a perfect tool for this purpose. It becomes easier for a student to process information if it is provided in a highly interactive, fun and engaging manner. Unlike other study resources, the effects of using this learning tool are visible straight away. Let’s look at online flashcards in a more detailed way.

How are Online Flashcards Different from their Traditional Counterparts?

The purpose of online flashcards is the same as traditional ones. Students use the course material and other relevant information in order to create their own summarized engaging flashcards, which are then used to revise what have been learned so far.

So, what is the difference then? The difference comes with the use of modern technology. Online flashcards not only help students fulfill their study goals, but provide a much more engaging and interactive effective learning tool. They are not another electronic, flashier version of the traditional means of learning, but are in fact a handy addition to the learning system.

Why Use Online Flashcards

With the availability of free online study tools, making flashcards is not a difficult task. Flashcards can be easily created and stored online. You no longer have to spend hours and hours making flashcards. With online software applications you can create colorful, attractive and engaging flashcards in a matter of minutes. You can even add pictures and small animations.

You no longer have to carry the flashcards physically. Since, most services are cloud based, flashcards created can be accessed from anywhere. You will also not have to worry about forgetting your flashcards at home. They will be with you all the time. You just have to use a compatible device to access them over the internet.

Besides all this, creating online flashcards does not cost you any money. Different sites allow users to create online flashcards free of cost. Similarly, these online flashcards are stored in the form of libraries. You can easily arrange them according to subject matter and the sequence you desire to study them in. Unlike traditional flashcards, online flashcards can be shared among several people at the same time.

Online flashcards can be used in different ways. You can not only revise and learn from them but put them to other uses as well. For example, you can randomize the flashcards you have created and create a quiz for yourself. The quiz will be based on the information you have added to your online flashcards, giving you the chance to test your knowledge in a stress-free environment.

Online Flashcards and Teachers

Students are not the only ones who can use online flashcards. Teachers can make use of online flashcards to enhance the effectiveness of their classes. Students can be asked to prepare online flashcards as their assignments. Similarly, teachers can also use online flashcards to create quizzes and test their students’ knowledge and skills. Good thing about this is that students will not feel stressed or pressured. Rather, they will see an online quiz as some form of puzzle or game. Besides this, teachers can simply review the flashcards created by each student from time to time to check on their progress.

Online flashcards are an effective learning tool that not only gives students an interactive and engaging means to study, but facilitates teachers and helps them improve the effectiveness of their teaching sessions as well.

Author Bio:

David Miller is an educational researcher who has vast experience in the field of teaching, Online testing and training. He is associated with prestigious universities and many leading educational research organizations. He’s also an ed-tech veteran, currently pursuing research in new eLearning developments and contributing author with ProProfs.

Excuse Me!

Managed File Transfer (MFT) ever heard of it? Well until just the other day neither had I, but apparently since the late 1990’s this little niche of an industry has been growing steadily to meet the demands of those of us who wish to exchange large amounts of data on a regular basis. And when you stop and think about it, it’s not surprising that this has happened. Nearly all of us exchange files of one kind or another every week, it’s just that some of us do it on a more industrial scale (think of those running databases and sharing info between one or more business units).

These folk are almost always going to need more than just a good FTP file storage and exchange site.

Professional Needs

What these professional guys require is a whole raft of additional features that go beyond just the ability to transfer a file form one person to another.

First and foremost they are going to want to know that the channel used to carry the transferred data is secure. For those that are really concerned about security that will mean the target file being encrypted not only whilst being transferred but also while it is at rest on whatever server it is stored.

Coming close on the heals of this requirement is the ability to have the transfer made not just person to person but also the possibility of transferring between person and process/application, or process/application to person and even process/application to process/application. This will allow the accommodation of automating the exchange, which in turn may require the integration of third party products such as content and anti-virus scanners.

Managing these exchanges is also extremely important to the corporate user, since keeping control of their data is paramount when considering the potential cost of a data loss or breach. The ability to refer to an audit trail of what was shared with whom is almost as important as preventing the unauthorised access to the data in the first place.

Should You be Interested in MFT

So now that you understand slightly better what MFT is all about should you be making use of it? Do you have a regular and on-going need to exchange data with business partners, sales teams and potential new clients? For most of us the answer is probably yes, but the good news is that there are emerging new products that can achieve this MFT without major cost or in major changes to our existing working practices.

The Future of MFT Today

A favourite of mine is a strong contender to be the next market leader in my humble opinion. It offers everything above and then some but unlike the norm it doesn’t ask you to take a leap of faith, a sort of step into the unknown. This product comes with several independent certifications and industry awards. Not necessarily the be all and end all, but offering a refreshing level of comfort in the fact that you are not the guinea-pig on this occasion.

Summary

And so it seems that although as I’ve stated earlier that this industry has matured, there appears to be always room for innovation and improvement. Oh and if you want to look at my choice go to egress.com.

PayPal is a convenient way to pay and accept payment online. Many online merchants use the service to get payment along with credit cards or debit cards from major companies such as Visa and Mastercard. Merchants and online buyers aren't the only ones who take advantage of PayPal's services. There are so many freelance workers who rely on PayPal to get paid for rendered services. PayPal makes our life so simple when it comes to paying for goods and services online. Despite how useful it is, some have been frustrated with the quality of the service they get from PayPal. There's even a group that has created a dedicated website to gripe about PayPal.

So if you don't like Paypal, then here are a few alternatives:

1. Amazon Payments

This service lets you send money to friends and family. Amazon’s service offers a simple way to send money as you can easily pay on thousands of websites by using the information stored in your Amazon account so there’s no need to input your credit card or type in your address. Online sellers are charged 2.9% +$.3 per-transaction for transactions greater than $10.

2. Google Wallet

With this service from Google, you can send money to your friend in the U.S. as well as spend the money on your account on stores. It also has an added service that it lets you leave your loyalty programs and cards behind as it can store it for you.

3. Merchant Inc.

This service bills itself as “Hassle-Free Payment Processing.” Like PayPal, their service is compatible with Ebay. Merchants can use the service to accept credit cards on their website and even send invoices to their customers. Merchant Inc.’s standard rate for transactions is 1.99%. Merchant Inc. also promises sellers that they can receive payments in as little as two days.

4. Square

Merchants can get a device from Square that they can use to swipe the credit card of their customer. The device can be used on an iPhone, iPad, or Android device. While the device can be used by brick-and-mortar businesses, Square also has a service that allows online merchants to accept payment. Square’s rate is 2.75% for every transaction.

5. Serve

Want to pay bills online just like you do with PayPal? American Express’ Serve service lets you get a temporary card at retailers such as Office Depot, Walgreens, and CVS/pharmacy. You can add funds to the card for free at participating CVS/Pharmacy and 7-Eleven stores in the U.S. With Serve, you can also send and receive money from friends and family who also have a Serve account.

6. Dwolla

This company’s mission is to allow anyone to quickly and safely move money online at the lowest cost possible. And they do have one of the lowest rates around at just $0.25 per transaction or free for transactions that are less than $10. Users can send money to an email address or phone numbers, the recipient needs to open a Dwolla account to claim the funds. Dwolla also has a mobile app.

7. ProPay

Like Square, ProPay also provides a dongle that attaches to your iOS and Android device that lets merchants accept credit card payments. ProPay also offers other devices that let merchants accept credit cards. Their rate for swiping a card is 2.6% while their keyed rate is 3.4%.

8. 2Checkout

This service is already available in 196 countries around the world and they can process 26 currencies. As for their rates, it’s a bit on the steep side as their transaction rate is 5.5% and they charge another 45 cents per transaction.

9. Xoom

Just like Paypal, Xoom can be used to send payment to friends and family. Freelance workers can also use this service to get paid by their employers. It’s geared more towards those who want to send remittances.

10. Bitcoin

This is an emerging form of currency and merchants can use Bitcoins as a form of payment and even avoid transaction fees. The challenge is that not a lot of people use this and several major exchanges have closed recently so it makes it a little hard to exchange your Bitcoins to cash.

For those who are frustrated with the service they get from PayPal or who just want another payment processor, they can check out these PayPal alternatives. Some providers offer much cheaper transaction rates compared to PayPal so that could be a reason to switch providers even if you are satisfied with PayPal’s service.
Image Credit: sscreations

A site of programming languages has made its way into the tech world in last 2 decades. And each of these trumps others riding on its glorious capabilities. While working on them is not fun by any stretch, the final product as a result of logical thinking and application of extensive skills is something web users around the world cherish.

And all these factors has lead to a huge boom in the software development sector. Students around the globe are more than willing to learn programming languages in order to stand better chances of grabbing a job when they graduate. There are various training institutes for getting trained on different programming languages. While these institutes are greatly equipped to help students grab the most important concepts an a most effective manner, trainees also need to do their bit on their own end. There are various sources on the Internet that can help them in learning different programming languages like PHP, Java, .NET, C#, etc.

These websites either offer online tutorials, or are the places where you as a learner can find answers to the most difficult and common question you often find yourself asking people.

In this article, I bring to you some such websites that have gained immense popularity in the developer community:

Stackoverflow.com

If you have been into programming from quite a while, there is a slim chance that you haven’t head of Stackoverflow.com. This is an immensely sought-after website where you can find developers from all parts of earth. You can find beginners as well as the most skilled programmers here. On this site, people often ask question for which there are elaborative answers provided in the form of full-fledged codes and program snippets. These code snippets are more often than not read to compile and help the learners to grab intricate concepts with much more ease. And if you can’t find what you are looking for, simply ask it, and you will see many hands raised there.

leetcode.com

Another websites that does not skimp on details while helping the learners get a firm grasp on different programming languages. There are dozens of programming languages being covered here, and irrespective of whether you are learning .NET or PHP, you are set to find all the answers right here. there is a huge literature on all the languages and you can refer to various pages for any confusions or doubts regarding the coding. You can go to the Q & A section to check if the question you have in mind is already asked there or not. It is a very responsive site that makes v=navigation between different pages easy and fuss-free.

asp.net/web-forms

This particular website is a haven for those looking to hone their skills in ASP.NET, and also for those who have to start from scratch. Practical PHP Programming is an extremely informative website that makes use of some insightful tools to impart incredible PHP lessons to the most untrained of minds. The time spent on this site learning .NET proves to be fruitful as you are made aware some of the most complex aspects of this language and platform. The Model View Controller is studied in detail and all the latest features are covered in this site.

Github

You can in detail learn how to use the APIs associated with different languages. Introduction to the most basic as well as the very advanced aspects of programming is done cleverly by the means of this website. Learning the programming language becomes a rewarding process as this website makes it an experience much cherished. You can even create a new project and host it without paying a penny. Now that’s a feature not every website offers.

With options aplenty, making a choice would be difficult, but worth all the fuss

Author Bio:

Peter Milar is a highly reputed writer who works as a team with the Java Web Development experts of Xicom Technologies to create informative and full of insight posts around the Java technology. Hire Java Developer from Xicom to receive premium quality Java application development.

Just as fun as it can be to shop online, it can equally be risky at times. Not because you might just end up ordering the wrong size (thank god to the fact that there’s always an exchange window and you can courier it back) but because there are some safety issues that you need to keep in mind while swapping that plastic card of yours. With a dramatic increase in numbers of online purchasing portals, online flick stores, shopping windows, etc. it is becoming more and more crucial to keep a watch on where exactly you are stashing your card numbers in. There are scammers flopping in the online world like never before. So it helps to keep an eye before you decide to lay your hands on that beautiful dress or shoe you just spotted on the screen.

Here we lay down few safety procedures which once you ensure will make your experience equivalent to one that you have while visiting your nearest mart for picking stuff up.

1) Your computing environment should be very secured

Almost a no-brainer yet half the online population neglects this as a safety step. When you make purchases online, everything is encrypted. So if your computer is not protected of malicious software, your financial information and passwords will be stolen (as a matter of fact everything stands the chance of being stolen that are saved in your computer). So it is the first thing to ensure that the firewall is on. Also adding to it, try avoid shopping online from cyber cafes or using a public network. Financial transactions are better done through trusted computers.

2) Verify as to just how much you trust the store

There are correct ways of going about the shopping portal/ website you are trusting:

- If you already know the outlet of the brand or store you are purchasing form, go-ahead and have trust. In case anything goes wrong during the financial transaction, you can always walk in to the relevant store and get the problem sorted.

- If you have friends or family buying from a particular store/ portal, there’s nothing to worry much in that case then.

- If you do not know the store at all, BEWARE! Keep your eyes open. Read customer reviews or best is, do the store’s background check by looking at sites dedicated to reviewing e-stores. You find your store there, go ahead and make your picks.

3) Avail discount

Why pay extra when there can be options o availing discounts. There are many sites like indianprice.com, etc. which provide massive discounts via coupon codes. They have lots of stores registered with them and if your chosen store is registered, there you go hitting the jackpot. Cross-check and who knows you might just be lucky!

4) The too-good-to-be-true offers are not all that good always

You got no idea about the extent deceits can stretch. It’s not just on the online space but everywhere but when you are putting your money online, you can just be extra careful. It won’t hurt after all. Do not fall for the too-good-to-be-true offers. If they sound too unrealistic, there is no harm checking their reliability. They can be pretty unreal. Often purchasing from those sites can just be calling for bad luck. They can be low quality or stolen items or can also be cheap substitute of tall brands. The products might just never reach you or the portal merchant might just be playing all of it up for trading your bank details with someone else.

5) Stay alert while buying a gift-card

It is always nice to make your dear ones happy with the fabulous gift cards which are available online these days. But always read the terms and conditions carefully when buying one. Also, ensure the store from where you are buying is legitimate.

6) Do not trade too much of information

If the purchasing site is asking more information than you think is required, back off. It clearly is not reliable. The reliable sites would not go beyond asking name, contact details, email address, some method of payment, and at max your interest/ hobbies. But if you come across ones asking for driver’s license number, bank account information, social security information, etc. be cautious. It is a fraudulent one. There are hints that the merchant resell, rent or share your information. Alternatively, check the site’s privacy policy.

7) Make a unique password if required

Often online purchasing stores ask you to create an account with them. You need not do it but just in case it seems important to you or easy, then carry on. But ensure you choose a very strong password for the account. Make it unique.

8) Go a step high to ensure the security of the site

Hold on! Just before you enter any personal or credit card info onto a shopping site please do look at the URL. See if the web address on the page begins with "https:" and not "http." That little ‘s’ tells you the information is being encrypted to protect your information.

9) Wiring money through Western Union or Money Gram is not suggestible

Reliable sites generally do not make it a mandate for you to pay through wires. It is always wise to pay via credit or debit card. Wiring is suggestible to people you know but not to random strangers. So do not take the risk unnecessarily.

10) The grammar matters!

Might just sound very funny but do read the content that has gone on the website. If the content hosted by the portal/ the site is full of errors, typos, poor content, you can already sniff danger. They are not professional.

All in all, novice shoppers who are going to just start buying online should better stick with well known brands and famous online shopping portals rather than breaking their head in the smaller, less known ones. Once you get a grip of the online shopping fundamentals, you can always start your journey towards becoming the pro online shopper. But till then, have patience.

Author Bio:

This is a guest article contributed by Ajeet Sharma who works for IndianCoupons.com - a coupon site helps user shopping online by providing discount coupons, promotional codes and deals for all major online shopping stores.

Are you slaving yourself to that PC in exchange of a completed coursework? Or are you catching after an oncoming deadline? The more urgent the nature of work, the higher your expectations is for that internet connection.

And when it fails to deliver, there’s no telling how worse it could be.

The slow net scenario

Now, at an era largely characterised by instant gratification, the sight of a loading icon – the circling arrow or the bar of green – could inspire automatic groans. Nobody wants them, unless this slow net thing is epidemic in your neighbourhood.

What are the causes of this slow internet connection? About.com’s “Internet for Beginners” has identified at least thirteen (13) causes.

1. Poor hardware
2. Incorrect router configuration
3. Leeching internet users
4. Un-upgraded NIC
5. Spyware/malware infection
6. Downloads
7. ISP’s routing signals
8. Outdated DNS
9. Full browser memory cache
10. Devices disrupt signals
11. Old PC
12. Open windows
13. Unattended dialog box

Take keen note these 13 represents the different possibilities. These may or may not necessarily disrupt bandwidth connection; it is up to you (dear user) to carefully weigh these things. The key to verifying it is by careful observation and simple logic (ie, is the connection faster with a new DNS, or not?).

Faster than energy bunnies

There are many ways of increasing your internet connection's speed. The best way to do it is to start with diagnosis. See through those aforementioned causes and learn which among those are causing your internet speed to drop.

Through a determined cause, you are able to appropriate a targeted solution. For instance, if the problem is caused by poor hardware, then you can purchase a newer and better model. If it’s about the incorrect router configuration, try to correct it or tap your friendly IT expert to do the works.

Or if the culprit of the internet snail-pace is your leeching neighbours (most likely the case for Wi-Fi connections), strengthen your connection’s password and utilise other security features. Infections, on the other hand, could be fixed through stringent scanning software.

Obviously, the nature of addressing your internet connection speed has something to do with the basics: consistent upgrades and investment in clearing ups. All of these serve to speed up that connection, probably faster than the proverbial energy bunnies.

Tech buddies

Apart from those, don’t skimp on tech savvy relationships. Try to foster a friendly (and not hostile) bond with that tech – the ones from the hardware distributor, the internet connection provider, the tech support team, and so on.

They’re your key to the better world of lightning speed connection. And though you might approach them for professional service, they would be willing to extend support if you’re consistently nice to them.

Awakened consciousness

Lastly, to increase the speed of your internet connection, try not to do things that could disrupt it. Avoid these disruptive things if it can be helped. And if the PC or any other device is shared among the members of the family, encourage them to perform the same measures.
Image Credit: ddpavumba

Author Bio:

Manuella Theissen works as a tech support for a widely recognised hardware brand. If not busy with clients, or writing stuff, Manuella can be observed at the local community service office, as she does code-writing tutorials for free.

It isn’t always easy for some students to finish, or even start, their higher education. After all, family obligations, work, and life can get in the way. Luckily, technology and e-Learning are now making it possible, and a little easier, to take responsibility for your own education and earn the degree you always wanted.

Taking your Education in Your Own Hands

In the past, it was only possible to take coursework in traditional classrooms. However, the demands from many students’ full-time jobs kept a lot of non-traditional students from being able to make it to class. As a result, their grades suffered and some students were even accused of being irresponsible, despite the fact that they were trying to care for their families and themselves in the only way they could at the time.

When it comes to eLearning, however, online classes offer the flexibility to learn and take courses in a different way. You can now take your education in your own hands. Students who wouldn’t have been able to regularly attend classes in a single city are now able to attend them virtually anywhere in the world-on their own schedule.

A Variety of Degrees

In addition to the flexibility that e-Learning offers its students, you’ll also find that many online learning institutions offer a variety of degrees and programs. These make it possible to find something for everyone, regardless as to what you’re interested in. This diversity is something that was seldom seen in the past.

For instance, some online program now offer as many as 20 or more online programs, including undergraduate degrees and even certificate programs which take considerably less amount of time to achieve. You can also find graduate degrees as well, which are becoming increasingly necessary in today’s world as competition is becoming fierce in the job market.

Some of the most popular e-Learning online degree programs include, but are not limited to:

• Marketing 
• Communications 
• Healthcare 
• Teaching 
• Business

More than Just a Classroom Experience

In an eLearning environment, you’re getting more than just a classroom experience. Students today require programs that fit into their professional life and relate to the work that they will eventually be doing in their prospective jobs. In online education, the programs help them learn the skills that they will need to be successful in their new roles as leaders within their jobs.

Most of the professors in the e-Learning programs have said that the flexibility of the programs allow them to adapt their classes to meet the needs of the students, too, so that they’re not creating the same cookie cutter classes over and over again.

Students enjoy being able to take a range of classes that will help them in all aspects of their career, and not just classes that are required of their majors. This can help give them a broader outlook of their professional world and give them the skills that will help them in a variety of experiences on down the road.

Taking Responsibility

Of course, it’s still up to the student to take responsibility for their education, but most students thrive in this and actually enjoy it more. They prefer being “in charge” of themselves and their actions and like it better than feeling as though someone is standing over them, watching. In the online process, coursework is organized on the internet by the instructor and the student must log in and complete the assignments and tests by a certain date. They must also take part in the classroom discussions as set up by the instructor.

Most students discover that the online learning environment isn’t that much different than being in a traditional classroom and is even fun. It’s important to be proactive. You must also give a lot of attention to your studies. As with most things, your online education eLearning experience will depend on how much you give to it. You’ll get back as much as you put into it.

For those wishing to expand their education and take responsibility for their future, eLearning offers a rich experience and the chance to broaden their horizons in an exciting frontier. Are you ready to take that next step into your future and take the responsibility for your education?

Author Bio:

David Miller is an educational researcher who has vast experience in the field of teaching, LMS Systems and online training. He is associated with prestigious universities and many leading educational research organizations. He’s also an ed-tech veteran, currently pursuing research in new eLearning developments, and is a contributing author with ProProfs.

URL shorteners are part of the unexciting world of Twitter and email efficiency. Yes, all the thrills and spills of making your Twitter messages a look a little cleaner of your emails look a little more compact. But, before you fall asleep with giddy delight at the prospect, you should know that not all URL shorteners are alike. They have been known to “introduce an extra point of failure” (life hacker).

An extra point of failure

This is some nerd’s way of saying that a URL shortener can cause you a bit of trouble. The website that published this idea claim that the company WatchMouse monitored a bunch of popular URL shortening tools/services over a month and noticed that they appear to have a few inherent problems.

The quality of the services varies a little with things such as a varying latency and varying uptimes. Their results are only subject to their own tests and bias, but here are a few of the results.

The slowest performance

This has to be the Facebook “FB.ME” which has a performance time that is four times that of its leading competitor. It takes a massive amount of time to connect when compared to the other URL shorteners.

The URL shorteners that are always online

Uptime is difficult to pull off at 100% in any online situation, but somehow the Google and Twitter shorteners had an uptime of 100%. Their tools are called “Goo.gl” and “Twt.tl”. The one with the worst uptime is Snurl. Do not forget the these figures were pull up by the Dutch WatchMouse team and were only based on recorded research that was conducted over a month time period.

Which is the most efficient URL shortener

That has to be the Google tool “Goo.gl” which narrowly beats the YouTube shortener called “you.be”.

The most secure tools

Nobody seems to have published reliable results on this one. However, many of the URL shorteners are from larger companies such as Google, Twitter, etc, which means they have a lot to lose if they are secret back doors for hackers.

Goo.gl

This is the official URL shortener that Google have released. It is highly trusted and reliable too. It contains public stats and can show real-time analytics for any of your short Google links. It is also the fastest for producing shortened links.

Su.pr

This is the URL Shortener that Stumble Upon have released and many people feel that it is one of the best URL shorteners on the market. It has sharing functions and the shortened URLs help to increase traffic from their own website. It has a history viewer and can tell you things such as the number of reviews and re-tweets that the URL has had. It also has real-time analytics like the Google URL shortener. There is also a very sexy function that tells you to best times to post based on the information it has collected in the past.

Tinyurl

It has a cute name and is not bad at its job. It has a browser toolbar and you can use the preview features too. The tool will also allow you to hide your affiliate URLs. It is not the world’s most feature filled tool, but it certainly gets the job done for you.

Bitly

This is a tool that some people use because they claim it helps them build a lot of traffic. It has a sharing functionality, which is rather nice. It also has analytic data with is good for real-time traffic and data analysis. The good thing about this tool is that you can get it in a number of ways. You can get it on mobile Internet and with browser extensions. You can get it via a website and there are lots of third party tools that use it too.

Budurl

This is a URL shortening tool but it does have a lot of premium features that some people have found useful. You are able to schedule your tweets to go out at a certain time and you can send emails to your clients and prospects. They have a mobile Micro-sites that help you to drive traffic for all of your mobile campaigns, and it is good for affiliate links. You can pull up very detailed statistics for comment sites and blog posts and you can add in advertising links. There is also QR Code integration for your print campaigns. You can add links to your PDFs and you can link to other files from your website or your emails.

Image Credit: Photostock

Author Bio:

Kate Funk is a freelance writer at http://www.aussiessay.com. She is mainly focusing on technology, gadgets and all the latest trends which are interesting for networking enthusiasts.

Every time a new technology is on the rise, everyone keeps asking the same question – is it secure? We live a time when everybody can be surveyed and wire-taps can be basically put on a whim so knowing what the secure protocols to use are is crucial, especially if you want to protect your data and privacy. Of course, nowadays you can't be truly secluded – that's the price we pay for living in the Information Age. However, there are a few things you can do in order to make it harder for people to get your information. Secure computer systems are a must, there is no denying it, especially if you want to protect your data, but you also need a shielded way to communicate with people.

It is undeniably a well-known fact that one of the best ways to communicate today is through VoIP (voice over Internet protocol) yet the question of the structural integrity and security of the method still remains. How secure exactly is VoIP?

VoIP vs Traditional Telephony

If you think traditional telephony is secure enough for you, then you should have no trouble with VoIP which is at least as secure as what you're used to. Of course, generally, every sort of system has its weakness – that's just an unavoidable inherent quality of the system, itself. I guess when you're trying to protect your corporate data, this doesn't sound very convincing, but when you think about it, it actually means a lot. Using VoIP isn't more dangerous than using any sort of IP transfers, although there is always a risk, but that risk can be mitigated. You are probably transmitting lots of information over the web, anyway, which means that you're already taking those risks. If you're going through considerable lengths to protect the data you are sending, then it's safe to say that VoIP will not pose a bigger security threat. You can never be truly sure if someone is listening in on your conversation, but then again – you can't be sure if you're using traditional telephony, either.

Internal Networks

VoIP are most safely used in closed networks. If you run a company and you have an inner network, then connecting different divisions, for example, with VoIP would save you money and it wouldn't be risky, unless you have spies in your midst, at which case someone eavesdropping on your conversations is the least of your worries. VoIP can connect two points of the network so people can directly communicate with each other without the possibility of anyone else accessing their conversation. This wasn't the case a few years. Back then, the LAN availability wasn't controlled by switches and everyone had access. Now, with the use of switches, you can easily connect two points of the network (or more if you wish) so you will get instant and secure communication. The only risk that lies here is if your network is unprotected, but then all your data will be available, so like I said – someone listening in on your conversations will be the least of your problems.

How Secure is VoIP?

Well, don't expect that VoIP is going to be the most secure way of communication the world has ever seen. If man has found a way to communicate, man will find a way to intercept that communication. It's as simple as that, however, as you can still take some measures to protect your data. VoIP is at least as secure as traditional telephony and can be made even more secure by taking the right measures. Bottom line is, if you're trusting a network enough to transmit sensitive data through it, then using it for VoIP should be just fine for you, because it's secure enough.

Author Bio:

Rose Finchley is passionate blogger keen on topics about Internet. She currently works as a technician at http://www.shinylondon.co.uk/end-of-tenancy-cleaning-nw1-somers-town/ and she has a lot of experience to share with the readers.