Internet Computer Security

By: Jon Martin

A Note on Security

You can never be 100% secure when on the internet.So never think that you are for that is worse than knowing that you are not secure at all.

Types of Security•A Good Firewall•An Anti-Virus Package•An Ad Ware removal tool(s)- Not necessary but is useful•Spam Blocking Tools

Types of Firewalls

• Hardware– This type of firewall is the most effective form

of internet security. Can be expensive.

• Software– This type of firewall is less secure than it’s

hardware cousin, but is still very effective at keeping out hackers. Prices range from FREE to cheap.

Hardware Firewalls

• Companies use dedicated firewalls, but a good router will do just fine for personal use.– Firewall/Router Manufacturers

• Netgear

• Linksys

Software Firewall

• There are two types of software firewalls.– Passive - A firewall that is not verbose, does

not communicate about what it is doing. Example - Windows XP built-in firewall.

– Active - A firewall that is verbose, it does communicate about what it is doing. Example - ZoneLabs ZoneAlarm.

Software Firewalls Cont.

• Several Good Firewalls– ZoneLabs ZoneAlarm FREE– Price: Free– ZoneLabs ZoneAlarm Pro– BlackIce Firewall– McAfee Personal Firewall Plus– Norton Personal Firewall 2004

Anti-Virus Software

There are many different Paid-for and Free Anti-Viral software packages out there. The free ones are just fine, but the for-a-fee ones usually offer more robust protection. Like e-mail scanning and script blocking.

Anti-Virus Cont.

• Software Packages-– McAfee Anti-Virus - $59.99– Norton Anti-Virus - $49.95– H+BEDV AntiVir Personal Edition - Free– AVG Anti-Virus - Free

Ad Ware

• What is Ad Ware? – It is software that is used to display ads on a

users computer.

• Why is it Bad?– In general it is harmless, but some ad ware

packages do NOT remove themselves after the host program is removed. So they take up space and may continue to serve ads to you.

Ad Ware Removal Tools

• The two most popular Ad Ware removal tools are:– PepiMK Software’s Spybot Search & Destroy– Lavasoft’s Ad Aware

• Both are great packages and both are Free.