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Any computer connected to the Internet faces the risk of attack. This is particularly true if you're constantly connected to the Internet through DSL or cable access. Having a persistent connection to the Internet can leave your computer especially vulnerable to hackers and other digital pranksters. So how can you protect yourself? Get some firewall software or hardware that sets up a barrier between you and intruders, safeguarding your data and your privacy. I didn't think this was much of an issue until I discovered that I was getting hacked into by someone in Argentina! And whoever was hacking into my computer placed virus-infected documents on my hard drive. The virus was created to spread over a network, so my other computers kept getting infected, as well. I kept wiping all hard drives clean and starting from scratch, only to find that the virus kept reappearing. For a long time I assumed that the virus was coming in through e-mail attachments that I was opening. Then I quit opening any e-mail attachments, but kept getting infected anyway. The last document the hacker placed on my hard drive was titled "IF LOOKS COULD KILL, I'D WATCH YOU DIE." That one got my attention! I immediately hired a computer consultant, who suggested that I get Black Ice Defender…an excellent personal firewall software program. This particular program enables me to see the number of outside attempts made to hack into my computer. Looking at the Black Ice activity log today, I can see that I have had 206 "suspicious" attacks over the last 90 days, one of which was near the "critical" level. Black Ice kept ALL of them out. And it also provided me with the following information on one such attacker:
This is how I was able to trace the virus-laden attack back to Argentina. The IP address was registered there. The one above appears to be in Clearwater, Florida. I'll never know if all 206 suspicious attacks were malicious hackers, ready to steal or damage my computer files. Or perhaps they were some kids with nothing better to do, trying to see how far they could penetrate into someone else's computer. But I've adopted the "better safe than sorry" approach. In addition to Black Ice, I also have a hardware device -- a gateway router -- which serves as double firewall protection. My consultant said that Black Ice was probably enough protection, but I wanted to build Fort Knox, so I got both. I'm pleased to say that I have not been hacked into once since putting these firewalls in place. Hackers continue to try without success. For more information on firewall protection, visit http://www.firewallguide.com, the Home PC Firewall Guide site. Thanks to Henry Stephen Markus of Seattle for giving us such a solid collection of valuable information!
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