IP Security in Windows 2000: Step-by-Step

Internet Protocol Security (IPSec) is a structure built of standards to provide secure communications and ensure privacy over Internet Protocol (IP) networks. IPSec is an Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) standard defined in Requests for Comments (RFCs) 2401-2411. Based on the assumption that most networks are not secure, and thus require additional components to protect data as it travels over the wire, IPSec provides source authentication, integrity checking, and content confidentiality.