New Windows attack can kill firewall

dromano · Oct 31, 2006

The code, which was posted on the Internet early Sunday morning, could be used to disable the Windows Firewall on a fully patched Windows XP PC that was running Windows'

See the full story here: http://www.infoworld.com/article/06/10/30/HNwindowsfirewall_1.html

G.T. · Oct 31, 2006

Attacks get more sophisticated every year. Many attacks these days immediately try to disable both your anti-virus and firewall app, so they can have free access without setting off any alarms.

I truly wish there was some way to impose and enforce capital punishment on malware writers and attackers.

matt.chugg · Oct 31, 2006

WIndows firewall sucks. It has never been recognised as adequate protection for your computer.

chaslang said:

3) Firewalls

A firewall is software or hardware that acts like a gate to help protect your computer against hackers and some computer viruses and worms that try to find unprotected computers that are connected to the Internet. This gate allows you to you to accept connections from sources you trust, and it keeps the gate closed for ones you don't trust. A firewall works by examining information coming from and going to the Internet. It identifies and blocks information that comes from a dangerous location or seems suspicious. If you set up your firewall properly, hackers searching for vulnerable computers cannot detect your computer (often referred to as a stealthed connection).

There are two kinds of firewalls:

Hardware Firewall - normally built into a router if you use one. If you do have a router with a firewall, make sure you enable it. And also password protect your router, especially if it is a wireless router. Wireless routers can be less secure because they use radio frequencies to communicate with your PC. So if you use a wireless router, you can help enhance the security of your network by enabling the firewall and by requiring a password to connect to your network. Make sure you also enable encryption on your wireless network.

Software Firewall - special software that you must install. Use a software firewall even if you do have a hardware firewall. But only use one software firewall. Running multiple software firewalls is unnecessary and using more than one software firewall on the same connection could cause issues with connectivity to the Internet or other unexpected behavior.

If you don't have a Software Firewall, get one of these below. The first four are free versions. I don't care if you're on dial up or High Speed....you must have a firewall or you can get infected faster than you can download any tools to fix your problems.

ZoneAlarmFree - no longer supports Win9x or Me platforms

Outpost Firewall Free

Sygate Personal Firewall Free<--- with the Symantec acquistion of Sygate, I do not know how much longer this will be around or be free!

Filseclab Personal Firewall Professional Edition

Kerio Personal Firewall

Note: For Win XP SP2 users, after installing any of these firewalls, you must make sure to disable the firewall that is part of WinXP SP2. It is enabled by default, and it does not provide adequate protection and is only an incoming (uni-directional) firewall. Similar to antivirus applications, you must use only one software firewall. The information in the following will help you disable the firewall: Windows Firewall Some of the above firewalls may automatically disable the Windows firewall for you, but it is best to check for your self.

For additonal info about the problems with Windows XP SP2 firewall read these:

How Secure is Windows Firewall

Is Microsoft's Firewall Secure?

Windows Firewall Flaw may hide open ports

Click to expand...

Also read the rest of the thread. How to Protect yourself from malware!

Lev · Oct 31, 2006

You don't need codes to disable it....I manually disabled it with one click of a button

Zonealarm all the way

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New Windows attack can kill firewall

dromano Staff Sergeant

G.T. R.I.P February 4, 2007. You will be missed.

matt.chugg MajorGeek

Lev MajorGeek