Help! I have a small business and I need to give an outside sales employee access to our software and database.

I was thinking about using PC anywhere or Eblvd to give the employee access to one of the networked computers. Is this safe? Is there another, better method? Also, does the computer need to be logged in to be accessed? Is there a way to have an outside user access this computer when it is at the XP logon screen. And then go through the logon/password procees to gain access?

I am running XP Pro.

Thanks in advance.

No, you don't have to be logged in.

No, it is not safe. One can harden the security in many ways, but do you have the knowledge to do this?

You have to weigh the risks and decide if it's worth it.. Some things to consider:
Do you trust that employee? Do you trust her computer knowledge in the sense that, for example she will not expose her own or your office computer to malware and knows how to recognise any malware infections? Does she know better not to use suspicious computers for this remote access? Maybe you want to restrict this remote access only so she can do it from a certain location? Will she be accessing this remote service from hostile environments (the competitor's office) where the network traffic could be monitored and cracked?

from her home pc ONLY

Hi. thanks for the reply

I trust her as a human 100%. I trust her computer ability a little less. i know she runs AVG, does spybot and adaware scans weekly. Any further defense than that, I can not guarantee.

She would only need to access from her home pc.

What do you think?

lookup gotomypc.com and see the link
How it Works and Our Technology

I'm not associated with this service, but if I had this need, this is what I would use!

Don't be fooled by greedy cons

The gotomypc link is embedded with an affiliate link so that this poser/poster will make a commission from you. I would stick with eBLVD ~ my 3-person company has been using it flawlessly for 3 years. We use it for secure remote access on both desktops and servers in our hosting room. We started with gotomypc but found it to be of inferior quality and function, and at a greater price.

I use Tight VNC for remote access for my business and it works great and it's free. Works better with a web browser than their built in viewer.
http://www.tightvnc.com/