firewall in XP

[Lapinrabbit]

Is this firewall to be trusted? I thought that XP came with one and that you didn't need a third party one anymore. I see everyone like zonealarm, what about norton? My new system came with a trail version of a virus and firewall, and it is just about up, so I need to buy another one. I had been using norton in the past, but now I am woundering if that is the best one. Thanks for your input.

[YODA74]

XP's firewall only blocks incoming not out going get ZA It's free or you can pay for the pro version

[Lapinrabbit]

Thanks for the relpy YODA74
I need an antivirus as well, right?
What is the difference between norton and zone alarm?

[YODA74]

I have never used Norton firewall have used ZA I like ZAfirewall
as far as an anti virus I use and like Norton and really with xp have never had a problem with it..
some people here like AVG anti virus it is free
Panda is another good av
which ever you choose you definatly have to have one...and keep up on your definitions.

[rahulkothari]

hi Lapinrabbit, chk out this thread (http://www.pcguide.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=15179) by mjc. it has a list of all the free & pay antivirus / firewall links.

[Mark Miller]

Just a note [most people here will disagree] I use the XP firewall and a good antivirus. Hopefully the antivirus picks up trogens that can come in thru your e-mail. If you are networked then a better firewall is helpful.
Mark

[mjc]

Mark, not many AVs are very good at trojans (Norton is close to the bottom of the list for trojans, although they have been adding more lately).

One of the main problems with the XP firewall is it is inbound protection only. Add that to the fact that it is not very configurable then you have something, that while better than nothing, is not really a good front line defense (kind of like having a gate but no way of locking it).

[Mark Miller]

Mjc,
You know you are right, I'm just too lazy to download and put something new on my computer. But I have read that if you are not on a network that going that route is pretty safe. I will bow to your superior knowledge and get a real firewall
Thanks for the concern and always for the help.
Mark :D

[sleddog]

Originally posted by Mark Miller
Mjc,
You know you are right, I'm just too lazy to download and put something new on my computer. But I have read that if you are not on a network that going that route is pretty safe.

Whether it is safer to be (a) stand-alone & directly connected to the Internet, or (b) connected to a network and through that, to the Internet depends on configuration.

In the case of (a) you will have a live IP (either dynamic or static) which means your machine is directly accessible to anyone on the Internet. The onus is solely on you to protect yourself (by using a firewall).

In the case of (b) you are likely to have a local area network IP and be connected through a gateway/router or NAT box to the Internet. The router or NAT box, if correctly configured, can provide protection from Internet intrusions. But you are still open to intrusion from other people on the network, so adding a software firewall to your personal machine is still a good idea. Security on a network is a shared responsibility between you and the network administrator.

[mjc]

Good points sleddog!

If more users were to take those responsibilities seriously there would be fewer threats (virus/worm/trojan/other malware) to contend with.

[Lapinrabbit]

OK now I am confused! I am on a cable modem with an antivirus
I am going to get a new norton antivirus anyway, so wouldn't that protect against all trojens and worms? If they can get in what is the problem with no outbound protection.

Again thank you eveyone for you continued input on this hot topic.:D

[mjc]

1. NAV has great detection rates against viruses, but it is a bottom scraper when dealing with trojans.

2. Outbound protection prevents known and unkown apps from making a network connection (you, the user decides what connects and what doesn't, not the program). There are times when lettting a program (one that is not malware) connect to whole world is not a good idea. A firewall with outbound protection gives you the ability to let that program run locally (whether on a stand alone machine or a local network) and not let is connect to the whole world.

[Mark Miller]

Mjc,
Just downloaded ZA and will give it a try. Real purpose of note was I checked out your links, very cool
Thanks Mark:cool:

[sleddog]

Originally posted by mjc
There are times when lettting a program (one that is not malware) connect to whole world is not a good idea. A firewall with outbound protection gives you the ability to let that program run locally (whether on a stand alone machine or a local network) and not let is connect to the whole world.

In the case of XP, there are time when letting the operating system connect without restriction to the world may not be a good idea! Personally I find it very irking the way XP trots off to IP addresses to do this or that... I like to know exactly what my machines are doing on the Internet, and what the Internet is doing on my machines.