Reviews of the best firewall protection software - Norton - McAfee - Sygate - Kerio:

Why do you even need a PC firewall? When you connect to the Internet, you are essentially opening the door to your computer and allowing hackers to easily get control of your computer if you are not protected by the latest firewall software or program. Once a hacker gains access to your computer they can steal important personal data like passwords and bank account numbers or they use your PC without you even knowing it to attack other computers on the internet. To protect your computer from outside sources, you need a PC firewall. A firewall program will shut that "door" to hackers and only let authorized traffic onto your computer. Unlike antivirus software, a PC firewall blocks unauthorized access to your web connected computer and will protect you against Internet threats and unknown software trying to get onto your system. A basic firewall will detect suspicious activity that is trying to come through your computer and block it. At the same time, a good firewall will hide your PC from view while you are on the Internet and that will keep threats to a minimum.

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The best firewall protection programs do cost money and come from McAfee, Norton, Sygate or Kerio. Usually you can sign up for a yearly subscription fee that allows you to get any updates and latest versions of the firewall software sent right to your computer from the firewall security company. That way you are always protected from Internet threats with the best firewall software. Many computers bought from Dell, Gateway or HP come pre-installed with firewall software and you then register to keep your 30-day trial going. It's an essential part of owning a computer, so don't put this off. Norton Personal Firewall 2006 ($50) and McAfee Personal Firewall Plus 6 ($40) are the most well know firewall programs on the market, but they use so many resources on your computer that they often slow down your system and can cause crashes or hang-ups and effect processing speeds. Norton, however, does prevent incoming and leak-test attacks (McAfee firewall is not adept at blocking leak tests). McAfee firewall does a good job resisting port attacks and it even tries to trace the source of the attack. Sygate personal firewall (acquired by Symantec in 2005) is another excellent firewall program that can be researched more online at Sygate.com. The Sygate firewall software protects against known and unknown attacks with host based firewall and protection technologies. Kerio is the other player in this field, and it's free to use (much like ZoneAlarm below). Kerio blocks leak tests, is easy to install and configure, does not handle password protection or scan email. You can get the latest version of Kerio at Kerio.com. The Barracuda Firewall is a network product that "protects against spam, spyware, viruses and inappropriate content entering or leaving their networks". It's a nice enterprise spam and spyware firewall solution with no per user fees. You can find out more on their products at Barracudanetworks.com. Cisco competes directly with Barracuda on security firewall services for enterprises with the Cisco Secure PIX Firewall. Go to Cisco.com for more details on the PIX firewall security appliances they offer.

Zonelabs Zone Alarm - Free Firewall Download:

Zonelabs has one of the most popular free firewall downloads on the Net called Zone Alarm. You can download ZoneAlarm for free and protect your PC from hackers. Just go to zonelabs.com and click on the Home & Home Office link, then click on the ZoneAlarm link to get to the free download page. ZoneAlarm is free for individual use. It's an easy to use firewall protection program that blocks hackers and other unknown threats. Also, it makes your system completely invisible to anyone on the Internet. I have personally used ZoneAlarm for years with no issues. It gives you the chance to accept inbound communications or turn them away and you can setup a list of programs that need to access the Internet that are listed as "ok". My latest computer came with Norton Firewall and although it offers a more secure firewall with added features, I still prefer ZoneAlarm for it's basic features and ease of use. It's not complicated to run, but still keeps out dangerous threats. For a more complete firewall solution, you can try ZoneAlarm Pro ($39.95) - network and progam firewall, operating system firewall, identity theft protection, anti-spyware, spy site blocking, privacy protection, and game mode. ZoneAlarm Pro is an advanced firewall solution with email security, wireless pc protection, and SmartDefense Service. There is a free trial version available on the Zone Labs website.

Router Firewall - Firewall Hardware:

Many home network routers have built in hardware firewalls that monitor and block inbound communications at the network level. I just upgraded my home network to be a wireless internet connection and the guy from Comcast said the wireless router has a built in firewall, but that I should still have a personal firewall on my PC for the best protection possible. Remember that a PC firewall will monitor and block both inbound and outbound information at the PC level and therefore should be installed on every computer on your home network. A router's firewall and a PC firewall will give you multiple layers of protection and should alleviate all worries. Even if you have just a dial-up Internet connection, you need a personal firewall installed on your PC.

Firewall Test:

Once you get a firewall on your computer, we suggest you give it a test. By testing your firewall, you will see just what type of programs are trying to get in and how well you are protected. There are lots of sites out there that will allow you to test your personal firewall. Give one of them a try and see if your firewall is configured properly:

• HackerWhacker
• Free firewall tests on AuditMyPC
• Sygate Online Services
• McAfee's HackerWatch.org
• Shields Up!
• Desktop Security Audit

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