Do you use a firewall?

[stiltman]

I use a Router/Firewall 1
I also at one time had PIX installed but it was too much of a hassle


The only thing that can be seen from the internet is what I want you to see

[tgpo]

I use the one in our router. Good enough for me

Sadly this is my last post here, as I have been fired

Good bye


Just kidding

[stiltman]

I use the one in our router. Good enough for me

Sadly this is my last post here, as I have been fired

Good bye


Just kidding

What the heck are you talking about!!!!!????

Why?

[MpegEncoder]

You should add a Hardware/Software Firewall combo to your poll.

I agree, and the "No" option on the poll should also include "What's your IP address?"

[flaninacupboard]

i use tiny personal firewall, been great. i briefly switched to sygate on my last re-install (as tiny seems to have gone commercial and i didn't have my backup of the freeware version to hand) but it gave me trouble at lan gaming. so i did the logical thing and turned it off. of course it didn't go away when you turned it off, it just ran somewhere in the background blocking ALL network access - my network card did NOTHING. so i thought it was a dead card, popped another in and that was dead too! grrrrr

Sygate is now burning in hell, missing LAN games makes me angry.

[hech54]

I also build, repair, and troubleshoot computers.

If I had a nickel every time I've heard that I'd be a millionaire.

Having a worm and then passing it onto someone else because you refuse to have a firewall is irresponsible in the broadband age

Do firewalls stop outbound stuff?

I have seen and repaired many computers that were infected by blaster so wtf are you talking about?

Like I said before TWICE....I've never had a worm on any of my computers so you've never repaired MY firewall-less computer.

Please remember that these are only machines...not human beings. And also please take not that there are some decaffeinated brands out there that are JUST as tasty as the real thing....lighten up Francis.

[gll99]

Router and Zonealarm. Also run AVG and Spy Sweeper as precaution.

[NightWing]

Main queston is how stealth are you? IE level of closed/hidden ports. And do you back up stuff?

Am mutiple layered with both hard and soft firewalls and various viris and spam removal tools. Constant changing and keeping thing altered to drive even myself nuts!

[mats.hogberg]

I've got an old 486 66 MHz with Linux on it as FW/web server/mail server/router. I've tried some on line firewall scanners/tests and they don't even find me.

/Mats

[SimonH]

I use a hardware firewall
Linux based Smoothwall on an old Pentium 166, it's also got a caching web proxy and DHCP server built in and it's hard as nails !!
If you've got an old PC lying around doing nothing, I highly recommend it.
http://www.smoothwall.org

[vioxx]

I am using ZoneAlarm Pro, Norton Internet Security 2004 Pro and Windows XP Internet Conection Firewall.

Scan my PC daily with Ad-aware Pro v6 daily.

Surf the net with Mozilla, not IE6.

Try to hack me!

I am safe.

[pyscrow]

I use Atguard, on a proxy system.

[gitreel]

me personally, I have spent too much money on parts and software to be suicidal like you. If you want to be stupid, be my guest hech54. Do firewalls stop outbound stuff? yes they do. It also keeps your computer from being hacked.

[triphop]

I have to agree - I was enlightened when I saw the number of scans on my box. There are people out there who are just scanning network segments looking for vulnerabilities...

[pacmania_2001]

There is also harmless net "static" that causes alerts with firewalls.

No number of firewall/spyware scanner/anti-virus programs will still stop an idiot getting infected.

[gitreel]

no but for the common sense thinking person, it does provide protection.

[HillJack]

Kerio 2.1.5 on 4 PC's, all behind a Linksys WRT54G router.

[offline]

My setup changes all the time as I like to experiment. My network was
attacked by sasser when I was winding down for the evening
around 2am. The system worked fine and began the auto trace
for counter attack but my provider was hit and I lost signal.

One thing I really hate is companies like
fastclick, cydoor and gator. They flood the net with their spaming
spyware and port scans costing thousands of cpu cycles every year.
They should be set on fire.

[gitreel]

i agree offline, where are the flame-throwers

[sacajaweeda]

Just don't surf the net on a PC with anything critical on it so if you do get hacked or get a trojan, who really cares? All that bad stuff out there like worms & such that you get occasionally just makes life more interesting. Don't run AV software and you won't even get those annoying warnings about infected files and whatnot.

Oh and fire that TGPO guy!!!!

[gitreel]

if you do that, why not just take a sledgehammer and beat your computer to a million pieces? Then you can kick yourself for destroying such an expensive machine.

[sacajaweeda]

Sledgehammers are just so impersonal. I prefer more of a creative, customized expression. I'm a ball peen hammer kind of guy.

[DivXExpert]

ZoneAlarm. But i was thinking of hooking up a router, and maybe making a Linux box out of some old PC to run through. So I would have ZoneAlarm, Linux Box, and a Linksys router. I think I would be pretty safe.

[gitreel]

Sledgehammers are just so impersonal. I prefer more of a creative, customized expression. I'm a ball peen hammer kind of guy.

so you would rather kill a computer more slowly eh....If I were to do it, I would want to get it over with quickly, but that is just me.

[MOVIEGEEK]

I don't use one at home but I have one in my car.

gitreel,
Lighten up...if someone doesn't use one don't criticize.

[gitreel]

ok, but I don't understand why people have computers when they do not take care of them.

[flaninacupboard]

why do people have cars and not take care of them? why do people have homes and not take care of them? why do people have kids, and not take care of them? it's just the way people are.

taking a sledgehammer to a pc is not the same as not running a firewall. absolute WORST case scenario from spyware/virii is you need to reinstall your OS and all your files are gone. for the majority of users this just means taking it back to where they bought it and getting the OS reinstalled under warranty, or running the sytem restore cd the manufacturer provided. that's a bit different to a hit from a sledgehammer.....

[gitreel]

you forgot the fact that a virii can trash your hard drive.

[GKar]

1) Software firewalls that that monitor outgoing traffic and create an MD5 footprint protect you from trojans, etc.
2) Hardware based firewalls protect you thru NAT & DHCP by giving your computer an IP address that is not accessible from the internet routing tables.

These are 2 good reasons to use both a Hardware and Software firewalls together.

(I am not an IT man so be easy on me)

Kerio 2.1.5 (Freeware)
3Com Gateway Router
AVG (Freeware)
Spybot (Freeware)

[flaninacupboard]

i don't know of any virus that can physically damage hardware.