[Novices] quick question about vpn firewall recommendations

[Bruce Smith]

> > i.e.  why do you need a VPN to browse the web or IM?
> 
> ... because I'm paranoid?

I'm just trying to understand what you're trying to accomplish.

> I realize that web traffic, email and web are transmitted in the  
> clear over the web, it's just that I'd like an added bit of security  
> when on an untrusted, wide-open wifi network.

OK, so you want to walk into Panera Bread, fire up your wifi, and have
your wireless traffic encrypted, even though the traffic through the
Internet is not encrypted?  Right?

To do this, you want to have an encrypted tunnel from your laptop to
your home (?) and bounce everything off your home network to the
Internet?  You realize that if the wifi network is faster than your home
network, then you are slowing yourself down?  AND (more important), you
are limiting your wifi download speed to the UPLOAD speed of your home
network?  Since many home networks have a much faster download speed
than upload speed, this could be a potentially huge downside.

I don't think you want to use SSH for this.  OpenVPN is a good option,
and typically very easy to get working using pre-shared keys.

You also might want to look at TOR (the onion router project), presented
a couple times at KLUG (DVD from another LUG).  This will encrypt your
traffic out of your PC, AND let you browse the Internet completely
anonymously (they can't even tell you're at Panera Bread, or even in MI)
And no home [or other] network to VPN into is required.

 - BS