On Wed, 3 Sep 2003 09:02:08 +0200, in <alt.privacy.spyware>, "floris"
<nospam@no.spam> wrote:
>
> i've been reading smething about a hardware firewall on this group.
> doesn't norton or mcafee firewall cover it?
[snip]

No. Fundamentally IMPOSSIBLE, especially in the context of Windows (which
is inherently insecure).

To paraphrase someone else, "Relying on a so-called 'software firewall' to
protect your system from the various threats it WILL be exposed to as soon
as you connect it to the Internet is like trying to protect your body from
gunfire by shoving Kevlar up your backside -- by the time the bullet hits
the Kevlar, the damage is already done."

For a wordier and more detailed explanation of essentially this same
concept, see:

<http://runet2000i.rutgers.edu/docs/lanfirewalls-main.html>


> is a vigor 2200 router a proper 'hardware firewall'?

Well, drop out the word "proper", and I won't argue too vehemently with
calling it a "firewall", even tho' it's only minimally so, really. It
offers NAT, which helps; but that is *not* the end-all and be-all of
firewall functionality, despite some folks' misconceptions to that effect.

I take it you're asking because this is the piece of gear you've got? If
so, that's OK -- it may not be "The Best" firewall extant; but far more
important than that is you learning to use it properly.

OTOH, if you're *shopping* for a firewall, then be sure to take a look at
these, before making a decision:

<http://www.cisco.com/univercd/cc/td/doc/pcat/iofwfts1.htm>
<http://www.dlink.com/products/?pid=141>
<http://www.netgear.com/products/prod_details.asp?prodID=157&view=>

HTH.

--

Jay T. Blocksom
--------------------------------
Appropriate Technology, Inc.
usenet01[at]appropriate-tech.net


"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."
-- Benjamin Franklin, Historical Review of Pennsylvania, 1759.

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