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Hardware Firewall / NAT Router
I'm starting to see occasional recommendations in news articles and on this forum to consider getting a hardware firewall. What is an NAT router? I have just a single computer with DSL, no home network, and I know there are mainly wireless routers which have a firewall, and I've also seen a wired router advertised. What would I look for if I wanted a hardware firewall?
joe53
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April 30th, 2008 04:00
A good discussion of NAT routers is here:
http://www.grc.com/nat/nat.htm
Although designed primarily for home or private networks, NAT routers also function as a hardware firewall that can benefit a standalone PC from external incoming threats (which is why I have one). To quote grc:
"Although NAT routers are not generally purchased for their security benefits, all NAT routers inherently function as very effective hardware firewalls ... As a hardware firewall they prevent "unsolicited", unexpected, unwanted, and potentially annoying or dangerous traffic from the public Internet from passing through the router and entering the user's private LAN network." (or stand-alone PC, I would add).
I use a LinkSys WRT54G router; since installing it my software firewall alerts about external threats have all but disappeared. Remember that with a broadband connection to the internet (dsl, cable) you are always connected. The only device that's seen from the Internet is the router, which has a firewall. All the computers behind a NAT router are invisible to the internet.
Note that a hardware firewall does not protect against outbound threats (malware on your PC trying to "phone home" for nefarious purposes) - for that you need a third party firewall such as Comodo or Online Armor, among others, offer. But a hardware FW goes a long way towards preventing malware from getting into your PC in the first place. It does not replace the need for a software FW, but it does add that extra layer of protection.
A hardware FW also does not provide protection against unsafe practises (opening unknown email attachments, visiting porn sites or illegal crackware sites, using certain p2p file-sharing programs to download illegal files, etc). Such practises are an open invitation that allow malware into your PC, bypassing any FW defenses.
I don't use Vista, and am no expert on routers, so I can't suggest which is best for your system. You might want to ask about this on the Vista board, explaining your needs. But it is a relatively cheap one-time expense definitely worth investing in.
njs1
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April 30th, 2008 13:00
Alexandra_P
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April 30th, 2008 16:00
SpotCheckBilly
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May 1st, 2008 20:00
It should also be noted that when one uses a p2p filesharing program, even if the program itself is considered safe (not bundled with any malware etc.), the files themselves which are being downloaded are very often infected with all sorts of nasties. Some p2p programs completely bypass AV software and anti-malware programs.
Vista users may not need a software firewall. From what I have been able to glean from reading on the subject, the firewall that's included with Vesta is much more robust than the one provided with XP. I believe it's modeled on one of the popular software firewalls (although I can't for the life of me remember which one it is). Definitely something worth researching. :) -- SCB
njs1
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May 1st, 2008 21:00