You read a lot about the Internet, but there is another net that you may not be as familiar with called the intranet. Separated by one vowel, the intranet is similar to the Internet when it comes to functionality; but unlike the Internet, an intranet provides users with greater security and control because it is entirely hosted on your network.
If your organization is using a standard computer network with servers and workstations, then you are likely using an intranet without even realizing it. This is because, from an end user's perspective, an intranet performs many mission critical tasks in the same way that the Internet does. Just like the Internet, an intranet has e-mail, chat, as well as all the other forms of digital communication; but unlike the Internet, the information of an intranet is only accessible from a company's local area network (LAN).
This is why many companies prefer to use their intranet to keep and exchange sensitive documents and communications, instead of transmitting sensitive data over the Internet where it is prone to hackers. In fact, an intranet that is not connected to the Internet will be impervious to hackers because all of the information is stored locally on servers that are inaccessible to the public.
In this Internet-less intranet scenario, the only way that a hacker can steal your data would be if they broke onto your premise and directly accessed your LAN network--which is unlikely to happen unless your servers contains secrets worthy of a James Bond-style caper. Because of this security feature, intranets are the preferred way for military departments and even departments and offices of major corporations to communicate, send e-mails, and transfer files.
Maybe you are comfortable sending your communications over Internet-based e-mail services, but if you are sending extra sensitive data from one computer in your company to another, then you might as well take the extra security precaution of send it via intranet. National Technologies Group can help setup your office with intranet communications, if you already have the LAN network hardware in place, then it is simply a matter of taking advantage of your intranet communication settings, these features come standard with network software like Windows Terminal Services.
The Internet and the intranet are not inseparable; an intranet network can connect to the Internet. In order to keep sensitive files on your server safe from the threats from the Internet, a firewall gateway is put into place between "the nets." Accessing the Internet from an intranet through the firewall will require a username and password. Whenever an intranet can be accessed from different locations outside of your network infrastructure, like the Internet or a wide area network (WAN--a company's private network spread out across different locations), then your intranet is now called an extranet. An extranet is still a very safe way to communicate, but you will want to make sure that your firewall is secure.
To learn more about how to setup your network to achieve secure internal communications, then give National Technologies Group a call at +61295186000. We can also check your intranet firewall for vulnerabilities, and for maximum protection we can manage your network security with our remote monitoring service. Taking advantage of your intranet can streamline the way that you do business. Call National Technologies Group to learn about all the intranet features available to you and let us show you how to get the most productivity out of your network.
