A word on firewalls

The internet is a big place. Out there are knowledgable hackers, scammers, spammers and villains who would like nothing more than to get into your computer. Once inside, they can do almost anything they want: look up personal information, damage existing information or try to take over your machine for a number of reasons. If you have a full-time connection with either cable or DSL, your computer is especially susceptible to an outside attack; however, even dialup connections aren't safe.

The fact is, if a hacker is determined— and capable enough— they will probably get into your computer. Large corporations employ security specialists (or teams of them) for this very reason; companies are generally tempting targets for electronic attack because they guard lots of potentially valuable information. That being said, for the average home user it's usually enough to throw up just enough resistance to make an e-invasion just not worth a hackers' time and trouble. In that respect, home firewalls can be compared to car alarms.

Before we get started, let's clarify a couple of things. In the computer world, the word "firewall" has two different definitions:
Firewall (n.) (frwôl):
1. A software program designed to limit access to your computer from the outside
2. A piece of hardware, such as a router, which can guard computers within your home. These are commonly called "physical firewalls."

For our purposes, we'll be discussing software firewalls in this article; their installation and maintenance.

Windows XP users already have a rudimentary firewall protection system called "Internet Connection Firewall." While the built-in firewall is better than nothing, there are many software titles out there that can do a better job of protecting your computer. If you're planning on using a 3rd party firewall program, you'll need to turn off Internet Connection Firewall before installing the new firewall. If you have no additional firewall protection, you might want to take a minute to verify that that your built-in firewall is up and running.

To toggle Internet Connection Firewall either on or off, hit "Start," choose "Settings," then choose "My Network Places." Right-click the connection your computer uses for the internet (LAN or High-Speed Internet for a broadband or network connection; Dial-Up for a 56K modem) and choose "Properites" from the popup menu. Click the "Advanced" tab and you'll see the checkbox for the Internet Connection Firewall. Checked equals "ON," unchecked equals "OFF."

Once you're finished, you can hit "OK" to save your firewall settings. Now you're ready to install your firewall software. Follow the software manufacturer's instructions and make sure the firewall is operating properly. Firewalls, like virus software, often need to be periodically updated to insure the highest level of security; make sure the automatic update feature is enabled to guarantee the best performance from your software.

Next, you'll need to configure which programs are and are not allowed access to the internet from within your computer. Generally, it's easiest to set this to "automatic," then go about your business as usual. As each successive program you use loads and tries to gain access to your internet connection, the firewall program will throw up a dialog box asking you if it's alright for the program to get on the web. Once the permissions are set, the firewall software will allow or disallow access based on your preference. By this method you can control which programs use the internet, as well as view log files to see if any outsiders have tried to gain access.