calling all free zonealarm users

[jane]

hi all, i have installed the free zonealarm firewall but am wondering how often updates come alomg for it, does it download them weekly like antivirus does? the only button i can find to update it says automatic or manual. its on automatic, but when i press update a little grey box flashes up on the corner and says something quick about connecting but then dosent do anything, does this happen to everyone else that uses it or is it just mine? i am worried that im not protected. it says firewall up to date and everythings running ok but how do i know that if something was wrong it wouldnt just show that anyway lol.
i know im paranoid but i had awfull trouble getting norton off before installing it and im just waiting for something to go wrong now

[ntluser]

Originally Posted by jane

hi all, i have installed the free zonealarm firewall but am wondering how often updates come alomg for it, does it download them weekly like antivirus does? the only button i can find to update it says automatic or manual. its on automatic, but when i press update a little grey box flashes up on the corner and says something quick about connecting but then dosent do anything, does this happen to everyone else that uses it or is it just mine? i am worried that im not protected. it says firewall up to date and everythings running ok but how do i know that if something was wrong it wouldnt just show that anyway lol.
i know im paranoid but i had awfull trouble getting norton off before installing it and im just waiting for something to go wrong now

Hi Jane,

Usually, you will be told when an update is available but you will have to download and install the next version when that happens. As far as I know, updates are no longer available for Windows 98.In the overview I think it also has a manual checker which you can use to check for an update.

To avoid any problems with security, I've set all the programs listed in Zone Alarm to "ask". The only exceptions are Microsoft Outlook which I use for e-mail and my AVG antivirus updater. That way if a program needs to connect to the internet it has to ask for permission so I know what's happening. It can be a pain but it gives me peace of mind knowing I decide which program will or will not get access to the internet.

Hope this helps.

[Gareth]

No, it doesn't need to update anywhere near as often as your antivirus does. A firewall update is really just changes to the application itself, whereas the antivirus updates are the signature files that are used to identify a new virus. basically, every time a new virus is identified by the AV vendor, they need to issue a new signature file, so you will get many updates over a very short period of time (some companies collate the updates and release a daily signature, whereas others release them as soon as they're ready).

[jane]

so if you click on the update button does the same happen to you or do you get a message that there are no updates available? im on windows xp

---------- Post added at 10:39 ---------- Previous post was at 10:36 ----------

when i had norton installed a messaage would come up saying something like "trojan hose backdoor" stopped or something like that, how does the firewall know when new trojan horses are about if the firewall dosent have regular updates? sorry really confused and paniking

[pedantic]

Personally, I would set the update to "manual" sometimes updates can be buggy, you're better off doing it manually. There are many people that use ZA, and you can usually get plenty of feedback, whether the latest version is stable or not.

[Gareth]

I think you might be misunderstanding the difference between your firewall and your antivirus.

Your firewall only acts to stop things that you haven't specified otherwise from connecting outwardly or inwardly... that means, by default it will/should block all traffic unless you have specifically granted permission for it to be allowed through your firewall.

The two ways that a firewall operates are either at the application level - that is, you specify which applications are allowed access to the internet, and any communications irrespective of their destination and/or their port numbers (the way the application chooses to communicate) are permitted. Or, alternatively, permission is granted at the destination/port level, whereby any traffic is permitted as long as it is going to/coming from a specific address on the internet, or is using a specified port... irrespective of the application using that port/destination address, the traffic will be allowed.

As you can probably imagine, the application-based permission is easier for end users to get to grips with. But Zone Alarm does allow you to permit or block any traffic based on either rule set.

I'm sure that you can now see, however, that if you've permitted access to a trojan, to use your example, then the firewall will not really help you - after all, it assumes you knew what you were doing when you specified that the application should be allowed through the firewall, or it is using the standard ports that the firewall has been configured to allow traffic.

The antivirus, on the other hand, exists purely to see whether the files being accessed on your PC contain a virus, trojan, worm, etc... and are not attempting to determine whether access to the network should be allowed or not. An antivirus will quarantine and/or delete an infected file irrespective of whether it tries to access the network or not.

[ADd]

I think a few links may help explain things better than I can

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Personal_firewall
The zonealarm free firewall is just that, more info and links here:
http://www.zonelabs.com/store/conten...me_pc_firewall

Norton is a suite, the 2006 version contains:

* Detects and blocks spyware, viruses, and adware
* Automatically blocks intruders and identity thieves
* Automatically filters spam and dangerous phishing email
* Blocks Web sites you don’t want your children to visit
* Gives you control over all incoming and outgoing Internet traffic
* Automatically scans email and instant-message attachments and removes viruses, Trojan horses, and worms
* Includes Norton AntiVirus, Norton Personal Firewall, Norton Privacy Control, Norton AntiSpam, and Norton Parental Control
http://www.symantec.com/home_homeoff...s&pvid=nis2006

Therefore while the Symantec will generally cover all the above, Zonealarm free will only control the packets of information leaving or entering your computer.

So if you have replaced Norton Internet Security suite with Zonealarm free you should add the following protection too:

One Anti-Virus Program:

AVG Free http://free.grisoft.com/doc/1

Avast Home Edition http://www.avast.com/eng/avast_4_home.html

Avira AntiVir® PersonalEdition Classic (has Linux/FreeBSD/Solaris version and Windows version) http://www.free-av.com/ (has no email scanner).

BitDefender (linux and windows free versions) http://www.bitdefender.com/site/Prod...1/Desktop.html

Comodo (windows only) http://www.antivirus.comodo.com/


Anti-Malware Programs (spyware, trojans etc)(Windows only):

A-squared free http://www.emsisoft.com/en/software/free/

AVG anti-spyware [used to be Ewido] (full version for a limited time, then you lose resident shield, and automatic updates. Still effective as you can download manually, and uses same malware signatures) http://www.ewido.net/en/

Spybot Search & Destroy http://www.safer-networking.org/

Adaware SE Personal http://www.lavasoftusa.com/software/adaware/

While one firewall (in your case Zonealarm), and one Anti-virus with real-time monitoring are recommended; which AVG Anti-vir and Avast all have (running any more can cause conflicts, therefore reducing your protection).


You can have as many anti-spyware programs as the wish. In my opinion the best method of defence is a layered approach as a scanner is only as good as its signatures.

[jane]

should i turn windows firewall on as well as zonealarm free fire wall for extra protection?
also when my son was viewing webcam with a friend on msn zone alarm pop up came up and said msn server and i ticked allow, was that ok?

[pedantic]

Originally Posted by jane

should i turn windows firewall on as well as zonealarm free fire wall for extra protection?
also when my son was viewing webcam with a friend on msn zone alarm pop up came up and said msn server and i ticked allow, was that ok?

Never use more than 1 firewall, they can conflict with one another. Turn windows firewall off, and use ZA.

Personally, I never give anything server privileges, unless absolutely necessary. Try denying msn server privileges, and see if you can still use the webcam facility. If not, then just allow it when it's needed, don't tick the box to remember allowing permission. That way, you'll be prompted each time it's required, and not allowing MSN to be a server all the time.