Firewall??

[FollowJC2Life]

I recently got Sprint FastConnect DSL at my house. Before I was using CompuServe (AOL) dial-up. I got the DSL working great, but someone had mentioned a need for a firewall. Is this a necessity? What threats do DSL users face that dial-up users do not? I'm running eMachines, 733 MHz machine with Celeron Processor, 256 MB RAM, and Windows Me. Thanks for any help.


FollowJC2Life,

 

[cdogg]

When you had a dial-up connection, the IP address that was assigned to your computer changed each time you reconnected. Plus, Dial-up users are on a really slow connection, so most hackers/threats won't even bother.

With a DSL or any broadband connection, your IP address will only change periodically (it may not change for weeks at a time) or not at all (meaning you have a static IP). Without a firewall is like leaving the front door to your house unlocked. Only this time your home address hardly changes which gives trespassers a lot of time to eventually find you (a problem dial-up users don't have).

Firewalls can also police your computer. It can help prevent renegade apps from trying to access the internet without permission. In some cases, they are trying to submit information that can be used to track your preferences or even expose your pc through a virus/trojan.

There's a lot more to it, so I recommend searching on

http://www.google.com

for more info. ~cdogg

"The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources."
- A. Einstein

 

[Kento]

A necessity? Well it depends on whether or not you'd like to be hacked and also have your computer used in 'denial of service' attacks around the net. With an 'always on' connection you'll want to have a firewall. Zone Alarm has a free version.

http://www.zonelabs.com

Outpost is also free I think:

http://www.agnitum.com

And as cdogg mentioned, not only will a firewall make your system stealthy to hackers but it will also block installed programs wanting to connect to the net on their own and will ask you whether to allow it to connect or not. That program might be some spyware or a hacker's trojan like 'subseven' that you downloaded via Kazaa, AIM or the like. (A trojan allows a hacker to have remote access to your system.) Without a firewall you may never know it was there. However there are many trojans now that'll shut down firewalls so they can't block them but if that happens then you'll know you have a trojan. So then you'd wan't to run a trojan scan. Moosoft makes an excellent trojan only scanner.

http://www.moosoft.com

If you install a firewall which I recommend you do and you get an alert saying some program you don't recognize wants to connect then you'll want to find out what that program is.

 

[snootalope]

Lets face it.. If a hacker who knows what he is doing wants in, he's gonna get in. Zone Alarm is just a weak a$$ wanna be firewall that couldn't stop a rookie hacker, that doesn't even know what an IP Address is, from corupting something!
Zone Alarm = $0.00 hhmm..

My $0.02 worth: Don't worry about it.. If they can get through your ISP- your screwed anyway!
happy surfing I should of been a doctor..

 

[cdogg]

If a hacker who knows what he is doing wants in, he's gonna get in


- What about an amateur hacker who doesn't know what their doing? What about spyware apps that are sending info back to the host without your permission? Can't those be easily stopped by Zonealarm or other similar free firewalls? If you think about it, it's better to have something than nothing.

It doesn't matter how much security you have (or how much you payed for it), if an experienced hacker comes knocking at your doorstep you're in trouble. The point here is that it's better to stop somebody than nobody. We've all faced the real fact that you can't stop everybody.


FollowJC2Life,
If your pc has sensitive information or you want to have high security for any other reason, look into the following:

- routers (w/ built-in firewalls and NAT config)
- turning off bindings from TCP/IP to all devices in your network setup
- remove "File & Print Sharing"
- turn off all ports except for the ones you need (i.e. ports 80)
- testing your security by visiting a site like the one below

http://scan.sygate.com/stealthscan.html

http://grc.com/su-bondage.htm

~cdogg

"The secret to creativity is knowing how to hide your sources."
- A. Einstein

 

[snootalope]

the CDogg is right..

Anyone can do a port scan or something to tell you about the remote pc, but for 99% of people who think they're hackers, that's all they can do!! I know because I was once at the same stage. "oooohhh thier telnet port is open, now what?" ha ha
Anywho, unless you're protecting info about blowing up Iraq for the FBI or something, why worry about. The chances of you being hacked are probably more than you winning the lottery and ending up in bed with Vanna White. Well, maybe not that, but I wouldn't stress it! "tis better to be thought of as a fool then open your mouth and remove all doubt" Mark Twain

"I should of been a doctor.." Me

 

[Kento]

"Zone Alarm is just a weak a$$ wanna be firewall that couldn't stop a rookie hacker"

That's bulls**t! If it and others like it are so bad why do hackers use trojans to try and get around firewalls? Why don't they just go through firewalls like ZA directly? Would you care to point us to a better software firewall AND show me an unbiased test that proves it's better than ZA and that ZA is garbage like you think??? I have not seen one.

And a firewall makes you stealthy to hacker's port scanners. That's one reason why you use it. Don't BS me and tell me that you shouldn't use a firewall like ZA especially if you have an always on connection like cable. One security measure like ZA may not stop all attacks as trojans can shut firewalls down but it's more than enough security for the overwhelming number of home users especially those on dial-up. And if your firewall is being shut down then you'll know you have a trojan/virus that's doing it. Most hackers send out trojans via AIM and Kazaa and such to try and gain access to home systems. They don't waste their time and effort trying to hack through firewalls. So as I said, don't BS me and tell me you shouldn't use one.

"Anyone can do a port scan or something to tell you about the remote pc, but for 99% of people who think they're hackers, that's all they can do!"

That's absolutely not true. You simply didn't know what to do from there. There are many programs that anyone can download for free that'll do all the hacking for you. I know where to get them. If you have a firewall running those port scanners shouldn't even see you so then those hacking programs can't hack you.

 

[LyallJ]

"Zone Alarm is just a weak a$$ wanna be firewall that couldn't stop a rookie hacker"

Please, you have got to be kidding?!?!?!? I will tell you what I am on a static right now, I will give you my IP and you try to bust ZA. And, if, not when, you do I will then agree with you.

You are just another example of somebody tring to sound like they know something, but in reality don't know s**t.

""oooohhh thier telnet port is open, now what?" ha ha"

ah, wouldn't zonealarm hide this? I think it would. On one of my pcs, I have open shares, telnet and ftp services running, I know my IP, and what is where, and STILL can't hack it.

"Anyone can do a port scan or something to tell you about the remote pc, but for 99% of people who think they're hackers, that's all they can do!"

Let me have your IP, and being such that you don't like firewalls, I will prove to you that even if your not keeping top secret info for the Goverment, hackers can make your life misible.

JC4Life.....please go download the zonealarm. Like it has been said, it hides your pc from ALL on the internet. If somebody does a class scan to look for exploits, they will not even know that you are there. And, anything that trys to get to the internet has to have your approvel first.

ok, i am off my soap box for now......