Do I Need A Firewall

Anyone who uses a computer needs to take computer security very seriously. You rely on your computer on a daily basis and will want to get the most out of your computer as possible. This means that you will also want to protect your computer from danger.

The Internet

The internet is basically a large network of computers which are all connected together. This makes it very easy for viruses to spread from computer to computer very quickly. If your computer is connected to the internet then you are at risk and must install the right security software. One essential piece of security software is a firewall.

What Is A Firewall?

A firewall is a barrier between you and the internet. There are two main types of firewall: these are software or hardware firewalls. They filter the traffic from your home network and the internet. You need to use a firewall whenever you access the internet because it provides you with invaluable protection.

A firewall separates the internet from the home network. This splits the network in two which makes it easy to decide which network traffic you should trust. Computer firewalls will help to protect you from viruses, DOS (Denial of Service) attacks, hacking and worms. These threats are always around on the internet and that's why you must use a firewall to protect you.

A firewall will also help to protect your identity. Hackers may be able to access your computer and steal your personal information if you don't already have a firewall in place. Most firewalls will automatically start separating home and foreign network traffic. You might need to do some configuration before you can start using them but most of them will work out of the box with only minor configuration.

Why Do I Need A Firewall?

You should know what a firewall does by now which is the main reason why you would want one. But you might not be aware of what it's actually doing. Whenever networking traffic is passed through the firewall it will decide exactly what to do. You can set the firewall up with a number of rules to block traffic from certain sources.

A basic firewall will only handle incoming software but the best quality firewalls will also screen outgoing connections as well as incoming connections.

The normal use for firewalls is to protect your computer from public networks such as the internet. Large companies will also need firewalls and antivirus applications and these can be hardware utilities instead of software tools.

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Spyware has many ways of getting onto your computer, such as:

When you download programs - particularly freeware, or peer-to-peer sharing programs.

More covertly, spyware can install itself just by you visiting certain sites, by prompting you to download an application to see the site properly.

ActiveX controls. These pesky spyware makers will prompt you to install themselves while using your Internet browser