5 Secure Ways To Use Your Firewall
I based this guide from the popular ZoneAlarm Pro firewall
1. First and foremost you should enable all of the available features of the software firewall.
2. Allow only those trusted software & services to gain permanent access to the internet.
Trusted softwares like your Antivirus, Firewall and other anti-intrusion tools.
3. Set your untrusted programs to “always ask” before allowing it to access the web.
Untrusted programs like your instant messenger, ftp software, web browser and your file sharing tools.
I label these programs as untrusted because these are the programs suseptible to attack/control from the outside.
Setting these programs to “always ask” allows you to monitor efficiently each of its own activities.
4. Make it a habit to read & analyze the alert prompts to avoid mistakes that could make your machine vulnerable. We should remember that common attacks these days are done using legitimate techniques which are far more dangerous than the older methods used.
Take for example the ff scenarios:
RAT (Remote Access Trojans) can probe IRC ports to establish a connection without the user’s knowledge.
This happens when the users infected IRC client is given priviledge to access the internet if his firewall is misconfigured.FTP software can also establish a connection without the user’s knowledge and can allow intruders to control your machine if left unattended.
A spyware infected browser can establish a connection if given the opportunity to do so and who knows what damage that could bring.
All of this is possible if your firewall is misconfigured deliberately or by mistake.
5. Last but not the very least is to keep your Firewall software updated to keep those intruders at bay.
Always remember that there is no absolute security, just some preventive measures that can help you minimize the chance of being intruded or exploited.
