Don't use FTP

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FTP vs. SCP vs. SFTP

• FTP: FTP stands for File Transfer Protocol. It is a simple protocol for transferring files to and from a remote computer. The down side of FTP is that it does not consider security. All transmissions are over open channels and are not encrypted.
  
• SCP: SCP or Secure Copy is protocol (similar to Remote Copy) that supports encrypted transfer of files. The SCP protocol implements file transfers only.
  
• SFTP: SFTP is an acronym for Secure File Transfer Protocol. It supersedes both FTP and SCP. It combines the flexibility of FTP with the security of SCP. This protocol supports file transfer and manipulation. It must also be noted that SFTP is a new protocol, it's not merely FTP over SSH.
  

Why SCP/SFTP

After clarifying the above, it should be clear why SCP or SFTP should be used when available. These protocols encrypt your communications providing greater security and help you keep Mr. Snoopy Ears out!

SFTP is not yet an official standard and hence most clients will attempt to use SFTP, if that's not supported, they will fall back to SCP, which ensures that although some features are unavailable, your communications link is still encrypted.

Client Apps

On Linux you can use the SCP client to connect to servers that support SFTP and/or SCP. Windows however, does not have a built-in SCP/SFTP client.

WinSCP in Windows

In Windows one can use a client such as WinSCP to transfer files securely.

• For more information regarding the use of WinSCP in Windows please look here.

Another Windows client is Bitvise Tunnelier. The advantage of this client is that upon logging in to SSH, it will attempt to establish both an SFTP and a terminal session.

Server

ssh.shellium.org port: 22 login: <yourlogin> password: <yourpassword>