started in the 1970s in the US by AT&T, and propelled by the growth in computer systems availability and demands, enterprise networks have been built for decades without the need to append the term private to them. The networks were operated over telecommunication networks and, as for voice communications, a certain amount of security and secrecy was expected and delivered. But with the Internet in the 1990s came a new type of network, virtual private networks, built over this public infrastructure, using encryption to protect the data traffic from eaves-dropping. So the enterprise networks are now commonly referred to as enterprise private networks'' in order to clarify that these are private networks, in contrast to public networks. See also eGranary Digital Library Enterprise portal Intranet portal Intranet strategies Intranet Wiki Kwangmyong (intranet) Virtual workplace Web portal References Computer networks Internet privacy