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The only way to make your computer completely hacker proof is to turn it off or disconnect
it from the Internet. Your computer can only be 99.5% hacker proof. If
you are using the internet without a good firewall installed, especially if you
have broadband internet (cable, DSL), because its like leaving your car running
with the doors open and the keys in the ignition, which would be an opportunity
not to be missed for a thief. Basically you just wouldn't do it, so why leave
your computer so open to hackers? A broadband Internet connection is easier
to hack because it's usually always on and in most cases uses the same I.P. address
every time, which makes it easier to find and hack. Most standard I.P. numbers
change every time you log onto the Internet, making it difficult for the
hackers to subject your system to more, and more attacks. Most attempts at hacking your system are random using some sort of I.P. port scanner, basically this scans the internet randomly for I.P. and port numbers, until it finds an open computer, once one is found the hacker will either hack your computer as fast as he/she can, or he will log your I.P. and open port numbers and then come back later, and as I said before if your I.P. doesn't change he/she could come back weeks later and hack your computer without you even knowing. If you are subjected to a random attack and you have a good firewall in place, your computer will not show up on the port scanner, and it will think you are not connected or your system is turn off, and in most cases it will leave you alone and carry on to the next I.P. in cases like this you should be 100% SAFE. The other type of hacking is called a 'direct attack' on your system or network by an advanced hacker with the knowledge, skill and a really good reason to want to get into your computer files. As with a determined thief, eventually given time he/she may find a way around the most expensive and secure alarm system, this is true to firewalls. If your lucky they will not be able to get into your system, but even the most secure systems have been hacked, when thought to be 100% secure. The only thing you can do is make it as difficult for the hacker to gain access to yours system, and hope that they get board or your I.P. changes, which again highlights how much more broadband users are vulnerable. You may be asking why hackers would want to hack your system, well basically information theft is one of the main reasons people are hacked, for instance you could be storing highly secret information, storing important documents, privet pictures, you could have information on your computer such as your home address, phone number, credit card and bank details, the list really is endless. Some of you are thinking, well I don't have anything private so I'm not to worry, your wrong because the other type of hacker (or prankster), will only hack your system to cause trouble, they could lock you out of your system, move/delete files and even completely wipe your computer system, losing everything and all this just for fun, in a sense just like joy-riders steal cars for fun. So what you need is a good firewall that will give you the most security and will be updated regularly. But first of all let me just tell you what a firewall does, basically it puts up a wall between your computer and the internet, and only lets you give permission for the programs/people to access the internet or computer, so you have full control over access in and out. There are lots of firewalls on the market these days, varying in price and strength. My favorite not only because its FREE, but because its easy to use and configure, and only days ago I read an article about a program that could breach a number of the top firewall packages available on the market, and guess what? It could not penetrate Zone Alarm. If you want extra protection than a free firewall can offer, simply buy the upgrade to Zone Alarm Pro. If your not convinced or you would just like to shop around for the one that best suits your needs, there are many good firewalls out there such as Norton, BlackICE PC Protection and some other FREE for personal use firewalls are Sygate, Hack Tracer and Kerio all of which have there good and bad points. |