Do I need a firewall

[PC-guy]

I have two pc's in my home that are on the net 24/7 by way of cable modem.
After a terrible weekend repairing damage to one of my pc's (because of a SubSeven2 Trogan) I decided to purchase BlackIce Defender, and I also updated my anti virus software. But now I am wondering if it is really needed. Is it possible for the average jerk hacker to get into my pc's without the aid of a security virus, ie Backdoor, SubSeven.

[SysOpt]

Here's a place to start (the DSL security articles): http://www.sysopt.com/network.html

[shadow]

And of course there's lots of info here:
https://grc.com/x/ne.dll?bh0bkyd2

Pat

[socalgal]

http://www.dynamsol.com/moosoft/


Excellent, I think.

I find it odd though, after running BID that you seem unsure if a firewall is needed.

Were you getting 'hits' (instrusion attempts) - red blinking BID icon in Systray? If so, that alone would indicate that intruders are attempting or possibly attempting to gain access. If you were *not* getting hits, then something wasn't working properly with the firewall.

[PC-guy]

Thanks socalgal;
But I just wanted to know if the majority of hackers are able to gain access to a clean system.
I don't like to have a lot of stuff running in the background, I want to know if it is reasonably safe to have just one form of protection, anti-virus or firewall?

[bell1]

Hey PC-Guy
You can test your online security by going to Steve Gibson's site at http://grc.com and clicking on the "Shields Up" banner. This site will allow you to test your "shields" and your "ports".
Another firewall you can find on the web is ZONE ALARM 2.0 . It's real good and it's free.

[smokin1]

To answer your question, no, with a cable modem, you need more than anti-virus to stay
safe...assuming someone found your computer interesting, even if the system was clean, access is not all that difficult...without some sort of firewall, a cable or DSL user is a sitting duck....
http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif

[PC-guy]

thanks for the straight answer.