By LEROY MCLEAN, ContributorZONEALARM IS designed to protect your Dialup, DSL or cable-connected PC from hackers. This programme includes four interlocking security services : a firewall, an application control, an Internet lock, and zones.
The firewall controls the door to your computer and allows only traffic that you understand and initiate. The application control allows you to decide which applications can and cannot use the Internet. The Internet lock blocks Internet traffic while your computer is unattended or while you are not using the Internet, and it can be activated automatically with your computer's screensaver or after a set period of inactivity.
Zones monitor all activity on your computer and alert you when a new application attempts to access the Internet. Also available is a host-file lock feature, which prevents host-file tampering, a method used by online scam artists to send users to spoofed Web sites.
ZoneAlarm installs easily, and a simple setup wizard helps you configure standard Web applications, such as your e-mail client and Web browser, to access the Web without the need to fiddle with port addresses or proxy settings. After the wizard has finished doing its job, you're up and surfing.
When other programmes or processes attempt to access your Internet connection, a window pops up and prompts you to permit or deny access. Of course, firewalls must protect you from incoming as well as outgoing traffic, and ZoneAlarm delivers. If an unknown outside source attempts a connection to your computer, the pop-up window alerts you to the intrusion and again prompts you to choose whether to grant access.
Advanced users can configure these settings in the Options window. Home users will have to watch the nag screen reminder while the programme loads, but that's a small price to pay for this level of protection. Do yourself and your data a favor and install ZoneAlarm.
Peace of mind has never been priced so right. The latest version adds several key features including in-client logging, which provides log filtering, sorting, and real-time analysis; AlertAdvisor, which offers instant security advice; a zone-management area, which lets you easily share files with computers and networks you trust while simultaneously blocking ones you don't; and an all-new, user-friendly interface. Other updates include improved interoperability with proxy server applications, and an improved user interface with a new maximize/minimize button. There are two versions of ZoneAlarm. You can download a free copy at www.zonealarm.com or purchase the professional copy at the same location.
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