What Are the Benefits of Firewall Configuration?

The Internet is a huge network of other individual computers. As a separate component, there is no danger of our attacks outside the system (without the use of pen drives and compact drive system), but connectivity to the networks of other outcomes of the vulnerability to attack. So there is no need for a strong protection to our computer. Firewall meets this demand by computer users.

Firewalls are used to create checkpoints at the border security of networks. It can be installed as a software program on a computer or can be combined with a separate hardware such as software router. A good experience helps us in the proper installation and configuration of firewalls.

Firewall prevents incoming and outgoing calls from your computer, but if you want a watch that leaves no smart hacker can steal your personal information, then it is necessary that the firewall must be fully open. Guidance of a certified technician helps optimize security and firewall fully insured for the safety of your data.

There are many advantages using security as a firewall, both inbound and outbound traffic, the firewall comes with the Windows operating system and is very efficient, firewall property (which comes with the operating system) provides the high level of security, Response time is very high high-end firewall, etc. All these features are readily available to users when using the services of a certified technician to configure firewall.

A firewall opens the ports you want to use and does not block other ports you need. Sometimes there is a need for the addition of an instant messenger or any multiplayer game, in this case you must configure the firewall to allow this type of traffic. However, it should be noted that the addition of security features to reduce try to add any functionality that only if there is an urgent need that.

A firewall is very important for the system, so save your system from external attacks and maintain security of your computer. There are many companies in the market that provide computer support for remote configuration of the firewall and the firewall configuration. The choice of a technique well in this area needs a bit of research, but be sure you take the best of the industry if you're really worried about the safety and life of your system.

Firewall and Antivirus Software

Have your firewall and antivirus software can make a big difference. For all that surf the Internet without adequate protection, care. There are tons of hackers out there waiting to make his next target.

First, what is a firewall. Many people do not fully understand what a firewall. A firewall is essentially a gateway that allows or denies access. For example, suppose your Internet surfing and not wanting to go to land on a website that downloads a Trojan for the wrong team without knowing it. This Trojan can scan your computer and personal information seeking. Once the information is available, such as credit card numbers, bank account numbers .. etc, will relay the information to online pirates. However, with a firewall, the Trojan will be unable to communicate without permission. The firewall stops the transmission of information and save to your computer. This software is vital to their welfare computers.

Now, anti-virus and spyware. Many people are not aware of the importance of protection against viruses and spyware. What people do not understand is that these insects are bad download to your computer and wreak havoc. For example, programs such as rouge Antivirus System Pro can be downloaded to your computer. This software will be damaged on the abduction of his team, so it is very slow and basically stops working the system.

If you want to save you from these problems, make sure you have the correct firewall and antivirus software. What works best is the Internet Security by PC Tools. This software is evaluated and rewarded as the best to buy a PC magazine many.

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How To Completely Remove Comodo Firewall?

Comodo Firewall is really a wonderful program to help the endless battle between the data of good quality data and easy evil viruses. I've been using and was very happy with it, but a few days ago, I met many difficulties in removing this firewall to a previous version so I could upgrade to the latest version.

Comodo is a firewall more difficult to remove from a computer. Usually passes through the Add / Remove Programs can not eliminate. You will find the traces that remain in the registry and the real firewall is still recognized by Windows Security Center, not to mention an Internet connection. To get rid of them, you can follow these instructions:

Method 1 (take this in Windows XP as an example)

1. Close all unnecessary programs
2. Temporarily disable the Internet connection
3. Delete the folders and files below, if they still exist. Most users will have C: \ Program Files as default if the location is on another drive, open it.

C: \ Documents and Settings \ All Users \ Application Data Comodo \
C: \ Documents and Settings \ All Users \ Desktop \ COMODO

Firewall Pro
C: \ Documents and Settings \% username% \ Application Data \ Comodo
C: \ Program Files \ [Comodo Firewall folder] Pro
C: \ boot.ini.comodofirewall (this file may not exist).
C: \ WINDOWS \ system32 \ drivers cmdGuard.sys \
C: \ WINDOWS \ system32 \ drivers cmdhlp.sys \
C: \ Windows \ system32 \ drivers inspect.sys \
C: \ WINDOWS \ system32 \ guard32.dll

1. Go to Start - (right click) My Computer - Properties - System Properties - Hardware - Device Manager - View - Show hidden devices - Non-Plug and Play, and then delete all existing entries as below

Comodo Application Engine
Comodo Firewall Pro Helper Driver
Comodo Network Engine.

1. Remove the following registry keys.

HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Software \ ComodoGroup \ PPC
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SOFTWARE \ ComodoGroup \ CDI \ 1
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ ControlSet001 \ cmdAgent Services \
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ ControlSet001 \ Services \ cmdGuard
KEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ ControlSet001 \ cmdHlp Services \
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ ControlSet001 \ Services \ Inspect
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ ControlSet002 \ Services \ cmdAgent
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ ControlSet002 \ Services \ cmdGuard
KEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ ControlSet002 \ Services \ cmdHlp

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ ControlSet002 \ Services \ Inspect
KEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ ControlSet003 \ Services \ cmdAgent
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ ControlSet003 \ Services \ cmdGuard
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ ControlSet003 \ Services \ cmdHlp
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ ControlSet003 \ Services \ Inspect
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ CurrentControlSet \ Services \ cmdAgent
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ CurrentControlSet \ Services \ cmdGuard
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ CurrentControlSet \ Services \ cmdHlp
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ CurrentControlSet \ Services \ Inspect
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ Software \ Comodo \ Firewall Pro
HKEY_USERS \ S-1-5-21-1202660629-746137067-2145843811-1003 \ Software ComodoGroup \ PPC
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ ControlSet001 \ Enum \ Root \ LEGACY_CMDAGENT
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ ControlSet001 \ Enum \ Root \ LEGACY_CMDGUARD
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ ControlSet001 \ Enum \ Root \ LEGACY_CMDHLP
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ ControlSet001 \ \ \ Enum Root LEGACY_INSPECT
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ ControlSet002 \ Enum \ Root \ LEGACY_CMDAGENT
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ ControlSet002 \ Enum Root \ LEGACY_CMDGUARD
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ ControlSet002 \ Enum \ Root \ LEGACY_CMDHLP
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ ControlSet002 \ Enum Root LEGACY_INSPECT
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ ControlSet003 \ Enum \ Root \ LEGACY_CMDAGENT
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ ControlSet003 \ Enum Root \ LEGACY_CMDGUARD
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ ControlSet003 \ Enum \ Root \ LEGACY_CMDHLP
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ ControlSet003 \ Enum Root LEGACY_INSPECT
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ CurrentControlSet \ Enum root HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ LEGACY_CMDAGENT \ SYSTEM \ CurrentControlSet \ Enum Root \ LEGACY_CMDGUARD HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ CurrentControlSet \ Enum \ LEGACY_CMDHLP \ Root
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE SYSTEM \ CurrentControlSet \ \ Enum Root LEGACY_INSPECT
HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Software \ Local AppWizard-generated

Applications \ CFP_Setup_3.0.14.276_XP_Vista_x32
HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Software \ Local AppWizard-generated

Applications \ CFP_Setup_3.0.14.276_XP_Vista_x64

HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Software \ Local AppWizard-Generated Applications \ CFPLog
HKEY_CURRENT_USER \ Software \ Local AppWizard-generated

Applications \ CPFFileSubmission
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE \ SYSTEM \ Software \ Comodo \ Firewall Pro

6. Finally, restart the computer.

Warning: These instructions can modify the Windows registry, and if the transaction is not corrected, may cause serious errors. So if you are unsure of your skill to do it, and if you are a novice with little computer knowledge, it is better to find a good removal tool to help you.

Method 2 Remove Comodo Firewall automatically in seconds

In addition to completely remove the programs, including those that can not be removed from Windows Add / Remove applet, a removal tool far below outstanding features:

uninstall registry entries completely empty or corrupted.
Forcibly removing damaged or hidden agendas.
It is much easier and faster to use than Windows (Add / Remove) application functionality

If you restore the log files.

In fact, there is a removal tool that can help you completely remove Comodo Firewall successfully and ensure that the files all the elements in the now defunct record and are automatically deleted connected with a few clicks. In addition to this software, you can completely remove other programs like Authentium, Norton, Trend Micro Antivirus, Internet Explorer or Microsoft Office and similar programs.

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Firewalls - Hardware Versus Software

The system provides the barrier between the outside world and the computer is the firewall. The firewall examines all traffic sent and the team gets to your computer. Only open the door if the traffic is permitted on a list of traffic sources and destinations. This vital system is almost a necessity for all computer systems in order to protect them from viruses, worms, Trojans and other threats. The question is: if the option to choose a hardware firewall or a software option?

To make better, it helps to talk about what a firewall. A firewall is a computing device whose sole purpose is to monitor and filter traffic. Internet communication is a process, not unlike a major highway system. When you enter an address in your browser, the computer sends a signal along a network path (numbered port number) to another computer (described by an IP address). The port number can be between 1 and 65535, while the IP address is four numbers each between 0 and 255. The firewall can see the IP address and port for each application, and is based on a set of firewall rules to allow or block the application. At least there are a number of traffic in both directions, creating a record traffic for later review.

The difference between a firewall hardware and software, where the firewall and works with the mechanism. A hardware firewall is a separate computing device that sits between your computer and the outside world. When the computer sends a request and the responses to the outside world, the firewall will examine and register the application before going through the firewall. A security software sits on your computer protected examine all applications in the software. They work to protect your computer against threats entering their infection by computer and send data to the outside world.

The hardware firewall has the advantage of separating the process equipment. We will review the traffic before it reaches your computer. This extends the protection software does not have. The hardware firewall also has the advantage of own resources. The firewall can also keep intelligence, packet filtering, not only said it was coming, but where in the next fact, and its contents to some extent. The hardware firewall can protect a number of computers on the network as multiple computers can be on the team.

The defect in the hardware firewall is that it seems so difficult to outbound traffic. This can be a big problem, as some malicious programs can send data or launch attacks from your computer. On the other hand, if the teams are too many network, the firewall in real time bogged down with traffic requirements, the decrease in the whole network down.

Software firewalls on individual computers at work. The user can choose to allow specific programs to send traffic to the outside world, and the protocol for other programs. Can be configured to deny everything, but what appears on a security list, or may have to decide what you want to keep the site safe list. The big problem with filtering software that protects only the computer is on. As a result, if a number of networked computers, each will need the firewall itself, which makes it more complex to configure the network.

The question of the best way is a challenge. Each has its merits. The hardware firewall is good at blocking any malicious code and the incoming direct penetration. The firewall software is better at detecting trojans and viruses via e-mail trying to turn your computer into a zombie terminal (one that launches denial of service attacks or "spam").

The minimum protection you should do is a hardware firewall. Updates and additions to the computer and your network does not affect your network security and firewalls. To increase security, replace the hardware firewall by adding a software firewall will give you a pass near complete protection. No protection is perfect, provided there is an Internet connection, then there is the opportunity for those qualified to enter a computer. Adding a firewall to deter most attackers and automatic blocking, malicious scripts.

Source from Articlesbase

Windows Firewall What And How Basics

What is a firewall?
Firewall is a software or hardware that helps users find and keep away all malware from your PC. Firewall software is the most effective way to help protect your PC. It is also important to activate the firewall before connecting to the Internet.

Need Firewall -
the actual computing environment has become very unreceptive. Therefore, it has become very important to obtain comprehensive protection for computer security in another way hackers can access your PC and your important data. Apart from hackers, the computer can also get affected by viruses and other malware. Firewall is used as a preventive measure to stay away from all those harmful elements.

How does Windows Firewall work?
Windows Firewall monitors all network traffic is enabled. Firewall keeps track of all communications originating from the PC and also prevents the PC of all the required elements.

If necessary, the firewall dynamically opens ports and allows the computer to receive traffic that you have specifically requested, as a Web page for which you have clicked on the address.

Windows Firewall also allows the user to block traffic unidentified, who can reach the PC. For special applications such as networking, hosting online games, or hosting the Web server, you can select the ports you want to leave open. This allows others to make connections to the computer, but can also reduce security.

S is always recommended that a firewall product should be well aware of the basics of Windows Firewall and how to use.

However, the firewall configuration creates problems in navigating many websites, such as gambling sites, web servers or other. If you are struggling with these problems, these problems can be well treated, with the help of technical experts.

(Note - Apart from the problems of Windows Firewall management, technical experts also help support the configuration of the complete PC security system.)

Benefits

* The Windows Firewall is considered of great importance to the great houses of the company. Serve as a network environment safe and central prevent hackers stay away from computers and crucial information.
* Provides secure web browsing environment, and reduces the problems of theft of data possible. It also decreases the percentage of internal threats.
* If you want a comprehensive, Internet. You can customize the configuration of the firewall. This can help block the unwanted single IP address, but the rest would be nice operation.
* You may choose the protocols to be included in the firewall filters. You can customize some of the protocols used are: IP, HTTP, TCP, FTP, SMTP, etc.
You can * customize the firewall to allow or block any port number

How to configure Windows Firewall on your PC

* Click the Windows icon and select Control Panel
* Click System and Security.
* Click on Windows Firewall
* If a green check mark is visible, you are running Windows Firewall.

Types of firewalls
There are several types of firewalls can be configured on your PC. These are significant -

* The packet filtering - This firewall used to examine the available information in the packet header of the message.
* Gateway application layer - This firewall working in the application layer protocol and it works quite intelligent than packet filtering firewall.
* Circuit-level gateway
* Hybrid Firewall

Source from Articlebase

Freeware Firewall Software - Zonealarm Pro

There are two types of firewalls. One is a network firewall and personal firewall computer. A network firewall is basically the skin of your system, is considered the first line of defense for your network. That is, is absolutely as a guard for the incoming and outgoing traffic that occurs on the computer. The main purpose of a firewall is to keep unwanted guests and guests to navigate and control the network and install malicious code that could further compromise the security of the network. This may be a hardware device or software application and is generally placed in the periphery of the system to function as a gatekeeper for all incoming and outgoing traffic.

ZoneAlarm Pro ensures that does all the work of a firewall should do. According to reviews, ZoneAlarm Pro is one of the most powerful software firewall available and functional. That's why he won over thousands of visitors:

1. It protects against the transmission of illegal entry or exit. In the event that a hacker could enter the computer can not steal personal or confidential information, which essentially negates the purpose of invading his first team. Some of the most experienced hackers tend to ignore the system they know is protected by ZoneAlarm Pro

2. Minimum aperture lock: This means that when the doors are open during transmission are stored carefully. So when the doors are done doing your job out of ZoneAlarm Pro to avoid exploits. This will prevent hackers with port scanners to enter the system using the unused ports profitable or not they have been accidentally opened, or opening for use by other programs.

3. Stateful inspection: the software scans the package and brings information to prevent false system-style invasions, the systems compromised by disguised as friendly communication signals or expected.

4. Full stealth mode, which means that the software ensures that the system ports are invisible for port scanning, which denies any attempt by hackers to draw the network and scan for open ports that may be vulnerable to brute force attempts.

5. Protected: The software has the ability to defend itself when a malicious program is trying to damage, especially in the case of malware that attempts to alter or modify the software code security software. ZoneAlarm Pro automatically blocks attempts to modify its source code, both in memory and disk.

6. OSFirewall: harmful and suspicious activity observed issues in the area of the operating system.

7. Privacy MD5 parody: the hackers can not take advantage of the good programs to be used as a host or vector for malicious code.

8. Rootkit detection behavior: Blocks all programs based rootkit and behavioral heuristics or signatures.

Source from Articlesbase

Firewalls: Your Personal Line of Defense

Every day, millions of users connect to the Internet. And with the price of services steadily decreasing, accessibility is increasing, which means that more and more people are supplied to access the World Wide Web on a regular basis. Even those who may be able to afford their own service make use of public facilities such as libraries, to log on at times. As with any technology, the Internet is experiencing growth and development on a consistent basis. Any Along with the growth and development, development problems should be addressed. One of the main issues is security plagues the Internet.

Because there are certain individuals in society who have little or no consideration for others, can sometimes be difficult to enjoy this wonderful technology. However, if you put a few safeguards in place, then your Internet experience can be a pleasure for the most part. That does not mean that you will not find difficulties from time to time, but you should not leave the door open to these vulnerabilities.

You probably already have antivirus software on your computer and you do not have any, then you should. In addition to its anti-virus software, personal Another line of defense is a firewall for your system. Firewalls are a great way to help protect your computer from attack and allow you to enjoy a pleasant online experience. To understand why you need a firewall, you also have to understand a little about how the Internet works.

When you are browsing the Internet, information is transmitted in both directions. In simple terms, that tell the computer where you want to go and returns the information you want. However, unscrupulous individuals make use of this gateway in the same malevolent develop their business. Having a firewall in place to HELP keep your computer and provides access to information stored on it. The main objectives of your firewall to prevent unauthorized transmission of information in any direction.

Some types of firewalls that help prevent attacks - intrusions, data theft and handling, and service attacks.

When an intrusion is basically someone or something is trying to access your system without your knowledge. Access is and ounces, then the attacker can cause all sorts of havoc as the theft of confidential information provided to access other systems and the alteration of the information stored on your computer. This type of attack is the type most people use firewalls to protect themselves.

Information theft that does not even require the system is respected. If the FTP server is not secure and the software is not updated often attackers These vulnerabilities are used to downloading files or sensitive plant Trojans to complete their work for them.

Denial of service attacks are attacks that prevent users of the services provided to them I want to access. Often, companies are the targets of these types of attacks and, unfortunately, are very difficult to prevent.

Some attackers are simply seeking a thrill, while others intend to harm him. You can prevent these attacks by installing a good firewall, especially if you use an Internet connection speed. You can configure your firewall to block protocols and set the security level you want. If you choose the firewall that has the ability to block all kinds of intrusions, which control applications on your computer can access the Internet, and to prevent execution of malicious scripts.

Firewalls are a line of defense for your computer and help you enjoy the Internet safely. Ensure that one place is no longer an option but a necessity.

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Did you Forget the Firewall - Tips and Tricks for the Savvy User

The choice of a firewall: Tips and Tricks User Understanding Without a firewall your computer is to open the computer to a series of attacks by hackers. These online criminals try to access a computer to modify or steal your private information. With this information, the hacker can steal your identity, or access and use the money from your bank account or credit cards.The recent years have seen a surge in identity theft, and a boom in the silk industry, as A firewall, working to combat identity theft. It is expected that sales of firewall to U.S. $ 3.7 billion in 2007 (from itnews.com). With all the options out there, how is the best? Choose wisely There are four main things that need a good firewall and power. Must have good features, easy to use, reliable and with technical support and check for updates available.Features are the ability to block cookies, web history browser logs, and other undesirable things. Blocking these decreases its susceptibility to viruses and attacks. Individual settings are a plus, since it is possible to visit some sites that their children can not or limit their time differently yours.Ease of use: the firewall is simple. It is not only intuitive, but should customize to your computer through your presets. The installation should be quick and software straightforward.Reliable respond properly to unknown information. Answer correctly to keep the malicious software such as Trojan horses, out. These things to come, could cause the computer to reboot or shutdown automatically lose unsaved data.Technical support is preferably free, and must be at or over the phone or Internet. The updates would be easy to find and use, sometimes 2 automatic.Top personal firewall software to be considered. Read more about the firewall as possible before buying. Check online reviews and forum posts. Ask around to see if friends or family has used the software you are considering and see what their opinion is. Act quickly, because you never know what your information is already in danger.

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Secure Your Computer With Firewall Now! Done

With the Internet become a common hang out place for nasty viruses, spyware and other perilous matter, you can't take your computer's security for granted. Such a situation pushes a need for PC security products like computer firewall. The basic function of firewall protection is to prevent unauthorized access to a network. A network can include your local area network, wide area network, and the Internet or it can simply be an Internet Service Provider (ISP) trying to prevent unacceptable access to the files. Computer users who are run actually run an effective firewall product need to be well versed with the basics of windows firewall and how to use it.

However, they can come across some common problems while using Windows Firewall. These errors usually include inability to configure firewall, trouble in accessing games, Web or other server. Such irritating issues can only be fixed with the help of professional computer technicians holding good technical knowledge and armed with right tools.

In addition to helping you with fixing issues with Windows Firewall, computer technicians can also get you the installation and configuration of your computer security products done. Some consumers underestimate the importance of configuring their firewall program. It is however significant to access the Internet. Most times, you may require changing your configuration setting to enjoy your audio applications properly. A properly configured Windows Firewall system is must for all businesses no matter small or large.

An increase in need for technical solutions is actually leading to the ongoing buzz about windows Firewall support. Computer users are engaged in offering such services have a vast array of resources to troubleshoot firewall errors, design and execute a perfect firewall structure as per your personal as well as business requirements. You may also consider Windows Firewall which come bundles with some of Microsoft Operating Systems like Windows XP and Windows 2000.

Windows firewall holds immense importance for corporate and serves as a core of a secure computing and networking environment. Technicians working with computer support companies are trained on the latest security technologies to deal with existing problems and threats on regular basis.

Written by Jonsan parker

Read more: http://www.articlesbase.com/security-articles/secure-your-computer-with-firewall-now-done-607261.html

What a Firewall Will Do for You in Your Fight Against Spyware

Spyware is used for a variety of nefarious pursuits. Some hackers use it track your e-commerce buys, send you pop-up adds and redirect you to different websites. A more sinister use is to track your keystrokes and obtain your login information to credit card accounts and online banking. They can then access your personal accounts and steal your money or commit credit card fraud. Even more sinister perhaps, some criminals will use your server without your knowledge to store and traffic illegal files like child pornography. An experienced hacker can even hack into your microphone and web cam to watch you and record you without your knowledge.

As you can see, protecting yourself from spyware is of the utmost importance. A firewall is the most effective tool to prevent spyware from accessing your computer. A firewall acts as a barrier between your computer and the outside world of the Internet. Anything that you do not want to have access to your computer is filtered out by the firewall. You can configure your firewall settings to determine exactly what that might be.

Many of the traditional firewalls were based on detecting malware on your computer so that you could delete it. This type of firewall allows a dangerous gap in security between the point at which the spyware is installed and when it is deleted. The more effective way to prevent spyware from causing you harm is to prevent it from ever being installed in the first place. Comodo Firewall Pro does just that. Comodo works proactively to protect you from malware installations by preventing all software installations that do not meet one of two criteria. If the software is not approved for installation by the user or found on an extensive list of approved software compiled by Comodo, it is disallowed. This prevents the gap allowed by many other firewall programs.

Comodo Firewall Pro is an advanced Firewall Program in many ways. It also features an advanced Host Intrusion Prevention System (HIPS) called “Defense +.” This feature prevents unauthorized modifications to your critical system files and protects against root-kits, inter-process memory injections and key-loggers among other things. The easy-to-use rules interface can be high customized by advanced users for more specific filtering. At the same time, it is easy for beginners to install and begin using right away. With the Comodo Firewall Pro, you don’t have to worry about your computer, network or privacy being compromised by malicious spyware or any other type of malware.

Written by Vijayanand

Read more: http://www.articlesbase.com/security-articles/what-a-firewall-will-do-for-you-in-your-fight-against-spyware-559281.html

Firewall Security Analysis Using Athena Firepac

Firewalls and Security Risks
Firewalls are dangerous! Let me explain, the primary function of firewalls is to provide a buffer from external attacks. Firewalls give people a feeling that their systems on internal networks are secure, which leads to a sense of complacency. But what they have actually done by putting a firewall is, put their systems at higher risk, by allowing access between internal and external networks. The proper configuration of firewalls, such that it provides maximum cover from security risks, demands significant network administration skills as well as level of understanding of organizational infrastructure. There are two immediate impacts on Firewall installation on an organization’s psyche. First of all there is an almost certain increase in amount of message traffic once the firewall is put in place. Secondly, people take more lenient approach towards the files or e-mails coming from unknown sources. These two can be a lethal combination. The very device that was meant to protect your network becomes the main culprit when systems are under attack from hackers.
Network Security Policies and Firewall
It is always good to have a well defined security policy before the firewall is installed and configured. But it’s not as easy as it sounds. Not all responsible policy-makers would necessarily know how to state their policy requirements. The second problem comes in translating between the security policy and the firewall implementation. Since the policy maker and the firewall administrator are usually different individuals, they may be unclear on the precise impact of their own decisions on each other\'s domains. In addition, administering a firewall requires making frequent, small changes to the configuration, effectively changing the firewall\'s security policy dynamically. Making any changes to the firewall configuration, without fully understanding the implications of that change, puts the network at higher risk of being attacked.
What network administrators need is an effective tool that will, at click of a button, show them the impact of their rule change on the overall network policy. A tool that can perform what-if analysis of rule changes and show the impact on network security policy even before the configuration is modified. Athena FirePAC, from Athena Security Inc. is a product which precisely does that.
Reducing Security Risks using FirePAC
FirePAC can help network administrators in reducing the security risks in many ways. First of all FirePAC can inform network administrators about the potential impact of change on their security policy, without actually making any changes to the firewall configuration. Secondly FirePAC provides them comprehensive risk analysis report, which pin-point the security risks, clearly identified on the scale of High, Medium and Low. This report is generated based on over 100 security checks derived from industry standard network security specifications.

Written by MS.LOCALE

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Firewall Support

The prime function of a firewall software application is to control access to or from a computer for security related concerns. A firewall is a software program, hardware device, or a combo of both that keeps a watch over the information coming through the Internet connection into your PC. The firewall will only allow data in that you asked for. It will also monitor outgoing data of your computer to the Internet. It will only let information out that you say can go out.

Windows firewall is a completely developed firewall application which can be turned on by its own and should be left on if you are not replacing it with another firewall. There is no doubt about efficiency of Windows firewall.

Windows XP's Internet Connect Firewall is really only half a firewall. It only checks incoming information of your PC and doesn't check outgoing data of your computer. Why is this important? If your computer has by mistake become infected with a malicious matter like virus, Trojan, worm, or spyware, your personal information is certainly in danger. Virus will attempt to replicate itself and infect other computers, or even allow hackers to access your computer to do whatever they want.

The only quality of a true firewall is that it will prevent malicious matter from getting out of your PC & inform you about the existing problem so you can clean it up. A firewall may very well be the most important piece of security software on a computer.

A managed firewall ensures the highest level of security for an enterprise network. As signified by its name, 24x7 firewall ensures that your data is secure and protected round the clock.

If you do not have a monitoring system in place then your database might not be running efficiently. You can consider availing help from computer support centers to maintain a competitive edge in managing data by making your database up and running on a 24x7 basis in an effective manner. You can look forward to resources like iYogi technical Services Ltd for the best firewall support services.

Written by Alina wilson

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What is Windows Firewall?

Windows Firewall is a personal firewall which comes bundled with Microsoft’s Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Windows Vista operating systems. It filters data before it enters your system. Not only does Windows Firewall check incoming information; it takes care of outgoing information as well. A firewall that works with a router program probes every network packet to decide whether to forward it toward its address.

Windows Firewall protects the valuable data stored on your PC in following ways:

• Denying Remote Login.
• Preventing SMTP session hijacking.
• Scanning E-mail bombs that carry viruses and other malware.
• Not allowing suspicious Macros to run on PC.
• Keeping track of Virus, Spams and Trojans.
• Deleting / blocking risk ware.

Windows Firewall ensures an effective security of Microsoft Windows. It also prevents the malicious software from going out of the system followed by giving prompt to clean it. Computer viruses and hackers use open ports of a computer whose firewall security system is disabled. It leads to spread of virus in whole PC. Therefore, a firewall is essential security software on a computer.

Windows Firewall was first released onto Windows XP SP2. All kind of network connection including wired, wireless, VPN, or even FireWire, has the firewall enabled by default. However, there can be some built in exceptions allowing connections from machine on the local network.

Windows Vista has an improved version of the firewall which boasts of addressing concerns around the flexibility of Windows Firewall in a corporate environment.

Installing firewall security system offers an ultimate protection to network against outside intruders. Improper architecture or poor set up of firewall can affect data, thereby hampering your productivity. This encourages a need for to avail firewall support specifically focused on firewall protection.

How a Personal Firewall Helps to Protect Your Home Computer From Hackers

There are two types of firewall available to the home computer user. A hardware firewall is a device which sits between your computer and the internet. At home for example it could reside on a broadband router which is used to share your internet connection with a number of computers. One of the advantages of a hardware firewall is that it can be used to protect more than one computer at a time. For this reason hardware firewalls are deployed in corporate networks. For home users who own just one computer a personal firewall is more commonly used and more cost effective.

A personal firewall is a software application that monitors and can block the flow of data between the internet and your computer. The firewall is a key part of your computer security set up. It prevents hackers from gaining access to your computer using an internet connection.

Hackers gain access to your computer through open ports that are used by your computer to communicate with the internet. The most basic firewall programs, like Windows XP's firewall, monitor and can block "inbound" traffic by closing these ports. If theses ports are closed a hacker cannot access your computer directly via the internet.

More advanced firewall programs like products from ZoneLabs or Symantec also monitor and can block "outbound" traffic. This extra level of security is important and is worth investing in. For example, if malicious software like a Trojan Virus or spyware were installed on your computer without your knowledge the firewall would alert the user when it tried to connect to the internet and prevent it communicating with its host.

A firewall usually works at two basic levels. Firstly, packets of data are analysed based upon IP address and content to see whether they comply with a set of rules which a user can input to. The second level the data is analysed is at the application level. The firewall determines whether an application can send and/or receive data and the port which it should be communicating through.

The firewall "learns" through continuous interaction with the user. It seeks user approval from programs when they first come in to contact with the firewall. Most firewalls also allow the user to allow or block applications through a stored list of program which can be accessed through the firewall's user interface.

There are a number of sites which will help test your firewall's effectiveness. A number of these sites are run by security software vendors so it is recommended you test using an independently run site to double-check any results. One of the best independent test sites is run by The Gibson Research Corporation. They offer a free test called "Shield Up!" which can be found at their website - http://www.grc.com. The test checks a number of well-know and vulnerable ports on your computer and then provides some useful additional information to help improve your security while online.

It is important to remember that the firewall is only part of your computer security and does not negate the need for a good anti virus solution, a spyware removal tool and a degree of caution / common on sense on the type of websites a user visits. For example, the firewall will not scan for viruses or remove them from your computer.

Written by Richard Rogers

Read more: http://www.articlesbase.com/technology-articles/how-a-personal-firewall-helps-to-protect-your-home-computer-from-hackers-18685.html

Firewalls Can Help With Your Security Concerns

The worst things to over look each and every time in this competitive age is about your PC Computer Security and if you are not careful with that nasty piece of codes are not going to show any mercy at all and rather thrash you towards any short of crisis once they took a front seat on your computing system.

But taking some of these steps can minimize your risk from virus, malwares, spywares, ad wares, Trojans, worms and from each and every form of infection your computer system can have. They are just viral kind of things once you got them they can give you sleepless nights.

And as per the old saying goes prevention is better than cure so why not act before things get into hands of those malicious codes known as malware. Using a firewall can prevent you from that malicious software’s which are intended to harass your computer integrity. But if your computer system is already got infected somehow, so firewall is not going to work out what next, our answers are there with a good friend of you, your virus removal software’s or anti-spyware software’s.

Here is a brief about firewall that would help you with some of your further security concerns.

Firewall: A Firewall is a shield that acts as a first line of defense when you are there on the web and prevent you from all those unpleasant intrusion to stay safe on internet. A Firewall supervises the web traffic that tries to explore them with you system which may be any of your inbound or outbound traffics.

So on the first go confirm that whatever operating system you have, check that the firewall with your operating system is already switch on. Although with the latest once that is with Microsoft Windows XP Operating System and Microsoft Windows Vista support Operating System they are set by default but that is not same with the Mac Operating System. So, if you have a Mac OS now you know what you have to do right now on a priority level.

How to check the Firewall Setting
Step 1: Open the Control Panel
Step 2: Select Security Center and open Windows Security Center
Step3: Select Windows Firewall option from Manage Security Setting
Step4: Now, select from two of the available radio buttons on the Windows Firewall Form, and For Now On is the right choice. Select "On"
Step5: Click ‘Ok" Button and you are done with setting up your Windows Firewall. Close the Windows Security Center and The Control Panel.

This was one of the simplest thing to can do for your security concern but if you are truly concerned with your security and it really matters a lot and for that if you can put something financially there are third party commercial software available.

Note:- If you are trying to install your third party software don’t forget to switch off that Microsoft Firewall as they may conflict’s with your third part software. To do so use the steps stated above and just select off on the place of step 4
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Written by James Burns

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Firewalls Hardware vs. Software for Home Users

We should all understand the need for a firewall for our home network. Firewalls help protect our computers from viruses, worms, Trojans, & hackers. What we may not think about is the difference between hardware firewalls and software firewalls. Here are some examples of software firewalls: Windows XP firewall, Zone Alarm, Norton Internet Security, Kerio Firewall, Check Point, and there are many others. Now here are some examples of (consumer grade) hardware firewalls: Linksys, D-link, Netgear, Iogear, Sonicwall, Netscreen, and many others. The cost of a home firewall can vary but the estimated cost are anywhere from $30 - $150 USD for ether a hardware or software firewall. So lets now take a closer look at the differences between the too.

Software Firewalls

The idea behind a software firewall is to protect your computer from harm by checking incoming and outgoing traffic for known Malware. Normally you have a training process to setup the software firewall by "burning it in". The software firewall will alert you to all kinds of traffic you may or may not know that is coming and going from your computer to the internet. It will probably ask you if you want to let this traffic though. Once you get past the training phase you are setup and ready to surf. Some of the user advantages for a software firewall are how easy setup is and updates are similar to antivirus software. Also a lot of software firewalls are built into antivirus programs so you night already have one running now. Some of the down sides to this kind of firewall are that the software vendors may not tell you about vulnerabilities and there are always going to be chances that without updates your computer can still be at risk. Just keep in mind that you should treat your software firewall the same as your antivirus products and keep it updated.

Hardware Firewalls

Hardware firewalls are normally safer because they are separate devices than your computer and any dangerous traffic get stopped before it hits your computer. Also if for some reason your network gets attacked your firewall takes the burden of the attack and not you're PC. Other pro's to the hardware firewall is that you can use it to protect all the computers on your network and this can save money from not having to load the software on all your computers. Hardware firewalls are also normally better because they are made to just protect your network and only serve this proposes unlike software firewalls that are just programs to run on your computer and can be disabled from other software and Malware.

Final Review

Let's now go over what we have covered and discussed in this article. Software firewalls are great and can help protect your PC. Keep in mind software firewalls are only as good as there last update. Hardware firewalls provide awesome protection and can as protect the whole network. The best thing to do is use both hardware & Software firewalls if you can. We recommend using the hardware firewall to protect the network and also using the software firewall to protect the PCs. Keep in mind that most of your antivirus software comes with some kind of software firewall protection and Windows XP (Home & Pro) has a software firewall option. There are also free software firewalls you can download from the internet. No matter how you chose to protect your network just use some kind of firewall and always use antivirus software.

Brian Wilson

CCNA, CSE, CCAI, MCP, Network+

Slimjim100@gmail.com

[http://www.middlegeorgia.org]

http://www.middlegeorgia.info

Written by Brian Wilson

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Brian_Wilson

Netscreen Remote Dial-UP VPN with AD Radius Authentication and route based VPN / tunnel interface

The following procedure explains how to set up a Juniper ScreenOS based firewall to accept Netscreen Remote Client VPN connections and authenticate users using Active Directory (Radius via Windows 2003 IAS or Windows 2008 NPS).

We’ll assume that all traffic to from the client to the 192.68.0.0/16 networks needs to pass via the client VPN tunnel. Clients will use dynamic IP addresses (either public or behind a nat router that is capable of handling IPSec passthrough)

The VPN connection must use the following encryption and hashing parameters and PSK:

* Phase 1 : aes-128, sha-1, DH Group2, PSK : This1sNot4GoodPSK3y
* Phase 2 : aes-128, sha-1, replay protection, PFS with DH Group2

Network Layout



The Juniper firewall has 3 zones:

1. Public (eth2, connected to the internet, static public IP),
2. LAN (eth1, connected to the LAN) and
3. A separate zone called VPNBuffer, not attached to any interface.

* This is just an empty zone, a placeholder, so we can create proper policies (instead of defining policies from Public to LAN, we will be able to use policies from VPNBuffer to LAN, thus separating the internet-to-lan traffic policies from the vpn-to-lan policies. It just looks better…)
* All interfaces are in route mode.

In the LAN network, there is a Domain Controller at 192.168.0.6, which will be configured as IAS (Radius) server. (The IAS does not need to be a DC, just a domain member will do)

This is what needs to be done

* Juniper : Configure an auth server (Radius)
* Windows : Set up Radius
* IAS on Windows 2003 or
* NPS on Windows 2008
* Juniper : Define IP Pool / Subnet
* Juniper : Create tunnel interface
* Juniper : Set up routing
* Juniper : Define IKE user/group and External Group for XAuth (Radius)
* Juniper : Set XAuth defaults
* Juniper : Configure Phase 1
* Juniper : Configure Phase 2
* Juniper : Configure policies
* Client : Configure Netscreen Remote
* Client : Connect .

Written by Zifra Permana

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More Information on Firewalls

It seems nowadays if you are not online, you don't exist. It really does not matter what type of company you run, you should have an online presence to let
your prospects and clients know about your company and services. When you decide to take the leap onto the Internet there are some precautions you should
take. I have friends who say all the time, I really have nothing to hide or worry about. This may be true, but malicious users like to deface websites.Which
can ruin you and your businesses reputation.

This is a paper about firewalls protecting your company from outside threats and unauthorized access.

A firewall is a great start. Firewalls can be both hardware and software based. There are many different firewall vendors some of the bigger names are Cisco,
Symantec, and Checkpoint. The difficult part is configuring the firewall. This is where many intruders bypass security, because the firewall is poorly
configured.

I would like to mention that there are many Open Source programs and operating systems that offer great firewall software. I personally believe that OpenBSD
has one of the most secure operating systems and firewall configurations if done right. FreeBSD also has firewall software, it is called IPTABLES.IPTABLES
offers packet filtering, NAT and you can even change packets in Linux. I have to say you can do anything you want in Linux, because the source code is right
there. It's a beautiful thing. Linux also uses this; you can build a firewall with the old system sitting in your garage and two Linux compatible network
cards.Linux can be hardened, this means to make the operating system more secure. I like the tool Bastille Linux its is developed by Jeff Beale.
To really get a grasp on firewalls you need to understand TCP/IP and allot of different protocols to know if you should allow or deny them into your network.
IP addresses identify hosts on the Internet they look like this 127.214.234.54. Firewalls can block IP addresses, ports, protocols and even keywords that
come into packets. Hackers that want into you network have many different tools at their disposal to try to bypass firewalls. One common attack is known as
Denial Of Service or DOS attacks. The attacker simply floods your network, firewalls with so many packets that it cannot handle them and sometimes crashes.
Firewalls are available with DOS filtering to keep these attacks low, and start dropping packets.

Firewalls do not protect you from internal threats such as employees bringing in viruses from home. Or remote users using VPN's (virtual Private Networks)
bypassing your firewall. Think about if you bring your son to work and he downloads music on your fast company internet connection only to introduce your
corporate network with a worm or even worst a Trojan horse. Service ports that are open to the public such as Port 80 HTTP, have know vulnerabilities on the
Internet. FTP has many vulnerabilities as well.

Are there different types of firewalls?

Yes. There are hardware and software firewalls. You might be even using Zone Alarm or Black Ice Defender. These are software based firewalls, the more I
study firewall technology I realize that everything truly is a software firewall. A computer is nothing without software to tell it what to do.

Packet Filters

Packet Filters look at source and destination addresses. This is where firewall rule sets come in to play. The firewall administrator must determine which
source and destination ports and addresses to allow or deny. The security administrator needs to keep up to date with alerts on vulnerabilities as new holes
are found and created daily. A technique known as spoofing can sometimes fool firewalls but making it appear that a packet is coming from inside the protected
network when in fact it is an attacker changing the source address.

Application Gateways

Application Gateways are like errand boys. You request a file and the application gateway grabs it for you.This is great for logging connections, and setting
up authentication as well.

Statefull Packet Inspection

Statefull Packet Inspection is a technique used by Cisco PIX firewalls and Checkpoint Firewalls these firewalls look at the data coming across the network.It
can also authenticate connections, users can usually not notice that the firewall is in place. Allot of firewalls now allow you to configure VPN's which is
awesome if you have remote workers and satellite offices and need to transfer data securely.

Intrusion Detection is also something to consider, I like SNORT. SNORT can detect known attacks against your system and does a great job at logging them if
set up correctly. There are thousands of different software and hardware solutions you can purchase for you home or network. I happen to like Open Source,
because I like learning and knowledge and the Open Source community has taught me more than the corporate world ever will. A book I would like to recommend
that is great for learning firewalls is called simply enough Building Internet Firewalls, it is by O'reilly. That is all for now. One last tip, backup, backup, backup.

Benjamin Hargis CEO MCP Phuture Networks [http://www.phuturenetworks.com] [http://www.computersecurityadvice.com] Email ceo@phuturenetworks.com

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Benjamin_Hargis

Written by Benjamin Hargis