Security Confusion

[nevermore]

I have XP Home with all updates. I have a wireless broadband network which
runs through a router with a firewall. I have Norton Anti-Virus. I use
Spy-Bot and Ad Aware and Mailwasher and PopUp Stopper. Do I need to run
ZoneAlarm or the like as well or have I become hopelessly paranoid?

I was under the impression that my router would do the trick but not sure if
it will stop outgoing stuff (ie. the same problem that plauges XP's inbuilt
firewall).

[Tom Porterfield]

nevermore wrote:
> I have XP Home with all updates. I have a wireless broadband network
> which runs through a router with a firewall. I have Norton Anti-Virus.
> I use Spy-Bot and Ad Aware and Mailwasher and PopUp Stopper. Do I need
> to run ZoneAlarm or the like as well or have I become hopelessly
> paranoid?
>
> I was under the impression that my router would do the trick but not
> sure if it will stop outgoing stuff (ie. the same problem that plauges
> XP's inbuilt firewall).

The firewall on your router will protect you from unwanted incoming
traffic. With Ad Aware and SpyBot you are also basically protected from
unwanted outgoing traffic from spyware and trojans. They don't actively
monitor all traffic on your PC, so how protected you are depends on how
careful you are with what you install and how often you scan. Zone Alarm
offers a slightly different type of protection since it can be configured
to actively monitor all traffic, some of which may not necessarily be
considered spyware.
--
Tom Porterfield
MS-MVP Windows XP & Smart Display
http://mywebpages.comcast.net/tp.porterfield/support

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