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How Secure is Windows Firewall?
Garret writes "Though Microsoft is doing their part in protecting Windows users from internet attacks by including a firewall in their latest service pack, one has to wonder just how secure is the Windows Firewall from XP Service Pack 2? Not too good according to Flexbeta. Their recommendation is to turn off Windows Firewall and get an alternative such as ZoneAlarm or Sygate PF. Simply the fact that Windows Firewall can be turned off by another application is enough to tell me Microsoft has goofed again." PCWorld also has a story about the new firewall capability.
20MB!!! Hey there's some good coding from microsoft for you.
You mean "Who could afford it?", surely?
A common opinion is that the Windows XP firewall is better the nothing, but it's wrong ! Worse than lack of security, it is to think that the machine is secure when actually it is not. Too many average users will think they are now safe with XP-SP2 and its so called firewall, and they'll never imagine what can still be done with outbound connections and all the information leaking out. Just install a real firewall and configure it to block everything ( inbound and outbound), except the applications you explicitly authorize to access the internet, and let everything else raise an alarm. Even if your machine is "spyware free", You'll be surprised of all the applications/games trying to call home with no good reason. Enough to get rapidly paranoiac. Now, Why ? Why does Microsoft deliberately issues in a Security oriented service pack a key component they perfectly know to be deficient ? In XP, they first issued a limited "firewall", but it was turned off by default ( contrarily to their "everything should be turned on" default rule). After the disastrous consequences we all witnessed these last months, they now reluctantly issue a new firewall with new rules, but still not blocking these outbound connections, and furthermore it can be silently disabled ! I don't think that Microsoft developers are incompetent and have all flunked "Computer Security 101", it looks like Microsoft does not want to prevent some kind of backdoor or some access to user information. ...all conspiracy theories are unleashed.
Sad consequence : nothing will be solved by XP-SP2. It will not stop trojan/worms/virus writers, spies, spammers and evil hackers. It will make their life just a bit more difficult.
Zone Alarm is SHITWARE it is on my Do Not install list. And how the FUCK can I change this Dam Ugly brown color theme in slapdot ?