Several different software companies have released their own firewalls and protection utilities. One of the oldest and most popular programs is called ZoneAlarm, by Zone Labs. ZoneAlarm comes in two different flavors: a pro version, which is a two-way firewall plus a boatload of other features, and a free version that is just the basic two-way firewall. ZoneAlarm is a different type of firewall than the firewall that is included with Windows XP and Windows XP Service Pack 2. ZoneAlarm includes a special two-way firewall that not only blocks traffic that
remote users are sending to your computer but also blocks traffic that your programs are trying to send out.
Now, why would you want to block traffic that your computer is sending? Sometimes, people are concerned about their personal privacy and do not want their computer applications phoning home to the developer's Web site sending usage data, checking for updates, or validating licenses. Additionally, it is nice to be able to control what applications have access to the Internet. If you let someone use your computer and they accidentally fell for some trick and installed software that turns out to be a Trojan (a program that allows others to mess with your computer), the Trojan will not be able to phone home to its creators, alerting them that your computer is now compromised.
Two-way firewalls, such as ZoneAlarm, will render such applications useless because they are contained in an isolated box and are not able to access the Internet.
ZoneAlarm is a great application to play around with and see which of your applications are trying to send data out to the Web. Follow these steps to get ZoneAlarm up and running on your computer:
1. Visit ZoneAlarm's Web site at www.zonealarm.com and download a copy. The free version is a little hard to find. Your best bet is to look for ZoneAlarm (free) under Direct Links, found on the mid-right side of the page.
2. Once you have ZoneAlarm installed and have followed the Getting Started wizard to get your computerÕs policy configured, you are ready to start up ZoneAlarm.
3. By default, certain applications, such as Internet Explorer, will always have access to the Web. However, the first time you run a program that requires access to the Internet, such as Windows Messenger, you will be prompted with a message from ZoneAlarm, asking if you really want it to have access.
4. Click Yes on the pop-up window to allow Windows Messenger to connect to the
Internet. If you see a request such as the one and do not know what the program is, click No and do a search on the Web to try to find out what that program does. If your search on the Web reveals that it could be spyware or adware find out how to remove it.
5. If you want to fine-tune your application blocking settings, select Program Control from the left menu and then click the Program Wizard button.
6. Then, select the Advanced setting and click Next. You will be shown a list of programs that will be exempt from the firewall, to which you can add entries. This list is similar to the exception list for the built-in Windows firewall.
7. Once you are finished, click Finish, and you are done.
ZoneAlarm is a great application. It adds a valuable two-way firewall to Windows, which can be very useful. I recommend that you give it a try and see how you like it. Just remember to disable the built-in Windows firewall when you are using ZoneAlarm to make sure there are no conflicts.
remote users are sending to your computer but also blocks traffic that your programs are trying to send out.
Now, why would you want to block traffic that your computer is sending? Sometimes, people are concerned about their personal privacy and do not want their computer applications phoning home to the developer's Web site sending usage data, checking for updates, or validating licenses. Additionally, it is nice to be able to control what applications have access to the Internet. If you let someone use your computer and they accidentally fell for some trick and installed software that turns out to be a Trojan (a program that allows others to mess with your computer), the Trojan will not be able to phone home to its creators, alerting them that your computer is now compromised.
Two-way firewalls, such as ZoneAlarm, will render such applications useless because they are contained in an isolated box and are not able to access the Internet.
ZoneAlarm is a great application to play around with and see which of your applications are trying to send data out to the Web. Follow these steps to get ZoneAlarm up and running on your computer:
1. Visit ZoneAlarm's Web site at www.zonealarm.com and download a copy. The free version is a little hard to find. Your best bet is to look for ZoneAlarm (free) under Direct Links, found on the mid-right side of the page.
2. Once you have ZoneAlarm installed and have followed the Getting Started wizard to get your computerÕs policy configured, you are ready to start up ZoneAlarm.
3. By default, certain applications, such as Internet Explorer, will always have access to the Web. However, the first time you run a program that requires access to the Internet, such as Windows Messenger, you will be prompted with a message from ZoneAlarm, asking if you really want it to have access.
4. Click Yes on the pop-up window to allow Windows Messenger to connect to the
Internet. If you see a request such as the one and do not know what the program is, click No and do a search on the Web to try to find out what that program does. If your search on the Web reveals that it could be spyware or adware find out how to remove it.
5. If you want to fine-tune your application blocking settings, select Program Control from the left menu and then click the Program Wizard button.
6. Then, select the Advanced setting and click Next. You will be shown a list of programs that will be exempt from the firewall, to which you can add entries. This list is similar to the exception list for the built-in Windows firewall.
7. Once you are finished, click Finish, and you are done.
ZoneAlarm is a great application. It adds a valuable two-way firewall to Windows, which can be very useful. I recommend that you give it a try and see how you like it. Just remember to disable the built-in Windows firewall when you are using ZoneAlarm to make sure there are no conflicts.
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