The XP Firewall Isnt Enough

You might think you don't need a firewall because windows XP has one built in, but read on for a plain-english explanation why this isn't enough.

Before broadband and cable connections were common most people didn't need a personal firewall because they weren't connected to the Internet for extended periods of time.

Every computer that connects to the internet has an IP address. This is like a sort of phone number, and is issued either to an individual computer or to a "gateway" that connects a private network to the 'net.

Domestic dial-up internet connections normally use a system called Dynamic IP Addressing where people are issued with a sort of "new identity" every time they connect, so it's difficult to find and attack an individual computer - Dynamic IP addressing is a bit like having your phone number change every time you use the phone, which makes it difficult for the bad guys to find you.

But the longer you keep a particular "phone number" the more chance there is of someone finding you and that is why high-speed always-on connections need handling with care.

In particular, with "always on" DSL and cable connections you are connected for extended periods of time which give the attackers more chance of finding you if you've got an unprotected connection.

In these days of identity theft and with more and more security holes being uncovered in commercial software it is vital that you have a good firewall if you use a high-speed connection.

You may already have a firewall, either in a device called a "Broadband Router" which goes between your computer and the Internet or the very basic firewall built in to Windows XP Service Pack 2 and you might think that's all you need.

But there's another reason that you won't have thought of.

Basic firewalls will tell you, and hopefully protect you if someone is trying to get in.... but they won't tell you if something is trying to get out!

That's right! Certain spyware and viruses can gather your personal information and send it out of your machine without you knowing.

A good firewall will spot these attempts to send stuff out and will warn you, quite possibly before your Antivirus or Spyware application notices the problem. Which gives you time to get the problem fixed.

Steve Blampied lives in Jersey in the Channel Islands and has been an independent IT consultant for around 10 years.

He is currently putting together a web site solely about free software.

http://www.freesoftwareadvice.com

He also has a small IT company in Jersey.

Technology.je Limited

---

Microsoft Great Plains: If You are Orphan Client ? What to Do and FAQ

Microsoft Business Solutions Great Plains, former Great Plains Software eEnterprise,... Read More

Adware, What Is It?

Adware is a type of Spyware program that displays some... Read More

Did You Ever Want to Completely Erase Everything on Your Computer?

Did you ever want to erase everything on your computer?... Read More

Performance Tuning of a Daffodil DB / One$DB -JDBC Application

This article illustrates the best practices to improve the performance... Read More

Cisco Certification: Introduction To ISDN, Part III

Configuring PPP PAP AuthenticationNow we know how the ISDN link... Read More

ERP Implementation: Success Factors

As seeing large number of implementations ? in our case... Read More

Microsoft Great Plains Jewelry ? Implementation & Customization Overview

Each Industry and market niche has business specific and unique... Read More

Microsoft Great Plains Integrations - Tips for Developer

In this short FAQ style article we would like to... Read More

Downloading Spyware Removers: Think Before, not After

Just imagine: you are walking, say, towards your car, and... Read More

Your Computer May Be Infected, Heres How To Check (NOT about virus)

NOTE: Please take time to read on - it may... Read More

OS 101: Suggestions for Choosing an Operating System

An operating system (abbreviated OS) is essentially the path through... Read More

Causes of ERP Failures

ERP is the acronym of Enterprise Resource Planning. Multi-module ERP... Read More

Healthcare Preventive Maintenance Software

Healthcare facilities such as clinics, hospitals, and biomedical laboratories can... Read More

Beware of The Pirated Software E-Mail Scams!

You have gotten those E_Mails buy software at deep discounts.... Read More

The Religion And Philosophy Of Small Internet Business

I have always had a tendency to focus on the... Read More

Crystal Reports - Geterogeneus databases: SQL Server, Oracle, Unidata, Btrieve ? Tips For Developer

Crystal Reports is the most flexible tool on the market... Read More

Microsoft Great Plains on Ctree or Pervasive SQL ? What to Do ? Tips for IT Manager

As you probably know, when Microsoft purchased Great Plains Software... Read More

Computer Based Language Development and Spell-checking

Language development computer: Computer-based method for aiding language development seems... Read More

You Can Write Microsoft Office Program in About 60 Minutes

Microsoft Office program is a programming tool called Visual Basic... Read More

How to Choose the Right Accounting Software for Your Business

With any good luck and a good amount of hard... Read More

OSI Layers Model

IntroductionDuring the early years of our modern computer era, very... Read More

Simple Solution for Php Includes - IFrames

I have recently created my first Php program. I wanted... Read More

Crystal Reports for Microsoft Great Plains

Microsoft Business Solutions ? Great Plains is designed to meet... Read More

Make 2005 the Year You Save Time!

Today's business world is fast-paced. No matter what it is... Read More

Microsoft Small Business Manager eCommerce ? Overview

Microsoft Business Solutions Small Business Manager is scaled down Great... Read More

Microsoft CRM Integration With Microsoft Office Documents ? Overview For System Integrator

Microsoft CRM is CRM application, maintained and supported by Microsoft... Read More

Review on QuarkXpress 6.0

After almost two decades of existence, Quark has become the... Read More

Where to Find Free Fleet Maintenance Software

Costs of fleet maintenance software can vary widely. It is... Read More

Corporate ERP Selection: Microsoft Great Plains

In our opinion, traditional approach when you select ERP/MRP system... Read More

Microsoft Great Plains implementation: Restaurants Supply Chain Management Example

Microsoft Great Plains serves majority of US based horizontal and... Read More

Snort for Network IDS

What is Snort?Snort is an open source network intrusion detection... Read More

Microsoft Great Plains Upgrade ? Version 8.0 Overview for IT Director/Controller

If you have Microsoft Great Plains as main accounting and... Read More

New SQL Delta Version 3.1

COMMAND LINE FUNCTIONA powerful command line script processor has been... Read More