Firewalls What They Are And Why You MUST Have One!
A firewall is a system or gateway that prevents unauthorized access to
your computer or private network. It is usually the first line of defense
in protecting your private information or data. A good firewall will help
protect you from malicious attacks of spyware, adware, malware, worms,
trojans, and hackers.
Firewalls are security mechanisms that control who can access and send
data thru your network or computer. They can be applied to both hardware
and software on your computer; many systems use a combination of
each for greater protection. All data or messages entering or leaving
your computer has to pass thru the firewall, which checks all messages
and blocks those that don’t meet your specified security criteria or
rules.
To put it in simple terms: think of a firewall as a security guard or a
security scanner for your computer or network. Anything going in or out
must be checked thru this system and must obey your rules!
Of course, this is just a simple explanation, firewalls can be very
complex; consisting of a whole combination of techniques that can be
used in concert depending on the level of security you wish to achieve.
These firewall techniques may include:
Application gateway — places security mechanisms on specific
applications (FTP, Telnet, etc.)
Packet filters — examines each packet using your computer and accepts
or rejects according to your rules
Circuit-level gateway — security measures for such connections as TCP
(Transmission Control Protocol) or UDP (User Datagram Protocol)
Proxy server — all messages entering or leaving your network must go thru
this proxy server, effective for hiding your true network or computer address
Also, for greater security, many networks use encrypted data.
If you are operating a computer or a server, putting up firewalls will
provide protection for your data and information that’s passed along your
network. If you regularly surf the Internet, placing a firewall
on your own personal computer is a must. There is no reason not to have
a firewall in place, you can download a free firewall from www.zonealarm.com
for your own personal use.
Keep in mind, no system is foolproof; any computer or network hooked
up to the Internet can be hacked! Therefore, most people in the know, always
keep a back-up of their important data/information on a secure off-line source:
floppy disks, CDs, or on a computer that’s not connected to the Internet.
Do daily or weekly back-ups to make sure your data and programs are safe.
Still, a good firewall will go a long way in protecting yourself from
any unauthorized access to your computer. With the occurrences of spyware,
adware, and other more invasive scumware increasing daily; putting
up a firewall and protecting yourself should be your first line of
defense against such unwanted and rude visitors. Nuke them at the gate
and save yourself from some major headaches.
Put that firewall up right now!
To learn more about Spyware and Adware Click Here: Spyware
Remover Guide
Copyright © 2005 Titus Hoskins of Internet Marketing Tools.
This article may be freely distributed if this resource box stays
attached.
Spyware, Viruses, and Other Online Threats - Is Your PC Properly Protected
AOL and the National Cyber Security Alliance (NCSA) released their second annual Online Safety Study a few months back, and the results weren’t pretty. While the latest survey did find that users were getting better at taking the steps necessary to keep their PCs properly secured, the findings show that there are still plenty of people who just don’t understand online risks.
Some of the key facts uncovered by the Online Safety Study included:
- 81% of home PCs lack one of the three main sources of protection - a secure firewall, anti-virus software, and spyware protection.
- 56% of users had no anti-virus software installed, or had not updated their virus definition files in the last week.
- 44% of users did not have a properly-configured firewall in place.
- 38% of users lacked spyware protection.
- Most telling, perhaps, is the fact that even in light of these findings, 83% of users surveyed still believed that their PCs were safe and properly secured.
The online security threat landscape has certainly changed from the days when viruses were home users’ biggest worry, but the survey shows that users are largely not keeping up with the times. Every PC connected to the Internet today should be configured with the following (at an absolute minimum):
- A personal firewall capable of filtering both inbound and outbound traffic.
- Updated anti-virus software that offers real-time protection, the ability to scan on-demand, and email message scanning features.
- Updated anti-spyware software that not only scans for and removes spyware on demand, but also proactively protects against threats in real-time.
- Windows Automatic Updates turned on (to download and install critical security patches, service packs, and updates automatically), or weekly visits to the Windows Update web site to obtain the latest critical updates.
Thankfully, keeping your PC updated and properly protected against online threats needn’t cost you a penny. There are a number of anti-virus, anti-spyware, and personal firewall programs available free for personal use. A simple web search will turn up direct links to some of the more popular options, which I will be discussing in more detail in future articles.
For the time being, however, considering beginning your PC lockdown process by taking a look at my beginner’s guide to eradicating spyware, The Best Free Anti-Spyware Programs. A secure PC is a fast PC, so take the time to start locking down your home computer today. Your system will thank you!
Dan DiNicolo is the author of the book PC Magazine Windows XP Security Solutions, and the managing editor of the online learning web site 2000Trainers.com
Tags: anti spyware, anti virus, firewall, online security, personal firewall, spyware, virusesThe Importance of Protecting Your PC from Viruses and Spam
Today the internet is a mine field of malicious code looking to harm your computer. Hackers want to have access to your PC for both fun and profit. You must be diligent in your ability to detect and then protect your important computer data.
Understanding what hackers are looking for, what doors they use to gain entry into your computer and which programs are available to help you protect your PC against any illegal entry will give you greater peace of mind and protect your valuable data.
There are three types of threats to your computer that you need to be concerned about. The first are viruses. The definition of a computer virus is a piece of code or a program that is that is loaded onto and run on your computer without your knowledge. They can attach themselves to other programs on your computer. Some Virus’ can reproduce at a great rate and in turn use up a lot of your computer memory. This eventually can cause your computer to crash. You get Viruses most commonly via email or downloading programs and files. One way is in form of .exe files. If you receive an .exe file you should never open it unless it has been checked and approved as safe by your virus protection program.
Viruses can come into your computer in many other forms. You have to be careful with flash files, movies, mp3 and even .jpeg files. This is a good reason to have virus protection software installed on your computer. Companies like Norton, McAfee (McAfee.com), Trend Micro who makes PC-cilliin (trendmicro.com) and Grisoft (grisoft.com) among others make excellent virus protection products. Grisoft makes AVG Pro which is competent virus protection software. They have a personal edition which is free to use and is very good.
The next piece of software that is needed to protect your PC computer is a firewall. A firewall is used to block illegal access to your computer or network. It will block suspicious data from flowing into your PC and block unapproved programs outside your computer from taking data from your PC.
Think of a firewall as a doorman whose job it is to open a large locked door. When the doorman knows who is knocking at the door either by an announcement or because he recognizes the person he will let them in. With your firewall the firewall is unlocked only on your authorization allowing data to be passed on or received. It learns after awhile who is trusted and who is not.
A firewall comes standard with Microsoft Windows XP (Microsoft.com). But in order for it to protect, you must turn it on. Other solutions are Symantec’s Norton Personal Firewall which you can buy by itself or bundled in the Norton Security Suite (symantec.com). McAfee (McAfee.com) also has a good firewall as well as the free version of Zone Labs firewall called Zone Alarm (zonelabs.com).
And, finally you should have good spyware software to protect against hackers or companies from snooping to find information about you through your internet connection. It is commonly used by companies for marketing purposes. Free spyware software that is widely used is Spybot’s Search & Destroy (safer-networking.org) or Lavasoft’s (lavasoft.com) free version of their Ad-aware spyware application. Spy Sweeper from Webroot (webroot.com) is an excellent choice and does not cost very much. Spy Sweeper has received many top reviews from the computer magazines.
If you install a virus protection software, Firewall and spyware software your computer will be well protected and you will have peace of mind. And, you needn’t spend a lot. In each category you can find a free version that is very good and will help keep your computer problem free.
Ken Katz runs a Dating site:Web4Love.com. He has written this article for his viewers to help inform them on easy and mostly free software to help protect their computers.
Tags: firewall, firewall protection, remove, remove virus, spam, spyware, virus, virus protection
