Securing Your Internet Connection

Because any Internet connection must use TCP/IP, which uses built-in logical ports numbered 065,535 to service different types of activity, any user of the Internet can be vulnerable to various types of Internet attacks, even if precautions such as turning off drive and folder sharing have been followed. Such vulnerabilities increase drastically with always-on broadband services such as DSL and cable modems.

Steve Gibson of Gibson Research Corporation (makers of the classic SpinRite disk maintenance program) has established a free web-based service called Shields Up that you should try with any Internet-connected PC to see how safe or vulnerable you are.

The Shields Up portion of the Gibson Research Corporation website (http://www.grc.com) probes your system's Internet connection security and Internet service ports.

After testing your system, Shields Up provides reviews and recommendations for proxy server and firewall software (such as ZoneAlarm, Norton Internet Security, and Sygate Personal Firewall) that you can use to help secure your system.

With the increasing importance of the Internet and the multiple vulnerabilities we've seen since 2000 to Internet-borne viruses, Trojan horses, and denial-of-service attacks, Shields Up provides a valuable service for any Internet user.

Chapter 18 discusses how using a router to share your Internet connection can also help protect your system against intruders.

Note

Proxy servers and firewalls are subjects that go far beyond the scope of this book. If you want to learn more, I suggest you pick up a copy of Upgrading and Repairing Networks also published by Que.

Que's Absolute Beginner's Guide to Security, Spam, and Spyware by Andy Walker is another excellent resource for users who want to install a personal firewall or otherwise protect their systems from the darker denizens of the Internet.