The Internet is a wide-open system, a meta-network where people come and go to wander at will. It's theoretically possible that with a Web browser, the right URL and an Internet connection, a Web surfer can go just about anywhere--even to your company's Web server.

Any time your connection must pass through an unsecured server, there is a chance your data may be compromised. But a few precautionary measures can keep your scheduling information safe.

As a basic precaution, you can require all users to enter a name and password before they can access sensitive information. You can also encrypt the scheduling data so it can only be synchronized with the proper client. The most secure solution right now is to have the systems administrator hide the schedule site behind a firewall.

For Web users of Novell's GroupWise, the ID/password combination is the key to keeping schedule data secure. OnTime uses a similar control, relying on passwords used for either Novell NetWare or Banyan Vines to provide security.

GoldMine Software keeps its synchronizing data private by encrypting the sync files. Starfish Software's products rely on standard Internet security protocols to keep data private. With its higher-end Intera product, Starfish puts different data elements on different machines, making it harder to crack the system.

If there's nothing particularly sensitive in your datebook, security might not be a pressing issue. But it's relatively easy to build in some protection, which could afford peace of mind with minimal effort. What if you have top-secret information that must be safe at all costs? In that case, the Web might not be the way to go for group scheduling--at least for the moment.