
Without going into detail as to what these features do (please see Part I for that), here again are the main options available in personal firewall software:Īmong these features, some of the most important that should be evaluated are: inbound vs. Firewalls are no longer the sole responsibility of senior network administrators - we are all qualified operators.

There are trade-offs, as always, but most firewall packages provide simple enough interfaces that anyone can monitor the firewall's activities. Advanced options like encryption, ad-blocking, cookie digestion and hiding offer greater privacy, but often entail more work on the user's part.
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The average user has several programs that regularly access the Internet (whether he or she knows it or not), some virus problems, and an interest in a cheap or free solution with minimal configuration and maintenance headaches.

Now we will explore some of the best options on the market, many of which are available free of charge or are already installed on major operating systems. More specifically, the need for personal firewalls in the home office was discussed. Part I of this series, Home User Security: Your First Defense, examined the typical functions of firewalls and how they can be of use on an individual level. Firewalls play a crucial role in network and computer security.
