Internet Security

Firewalls
If you're reading this page from an office then unless they're negligent your employer is protecting their network (and hence you) by having a firewall in place. There are many different kinds available but the best selling model is the Cisco Secure PIX Firewall from Cisco Systems.

But what do you do if you're at home? Well if you're got a router then it's probably a Cisco router and you can probably add Cisco IOS Firewall to the Cisco IOS in place.

But what if, like me, you just have a modem/ISDN card to access you ISP? Well there are a number of companies who produce software to run on your PC to help protect it. I use ZoneAlarm from Zone Labs. I use it for two major reasons: It's free for personal use and it works well.

Other manufacturers include Network ICE with BlackICE; McAfee with Firewall and Internet Guard Dog; Symantec with Norton Personal Firewall

If you want to check if your machine is venerable to attack from the Internet - and this is equally valid is you have a firewall or not - then try GRC.

Java / JavaScript
I'm not a great fan of Java or JavaScript. Sure you can make great things happen, but it does mean that people who view your site must have these optioned enabled in their browser. Personally I turn both off, and only re-enable then If I need to and if I trust the site I'm visiting.

Java / JavaScript shouldn't able to do much my themselves. But bugs do exist in browsers. Normally this is no big security issue, but the same is not true if you have Java / JavaScript enabled.

For Netscape v3.x

Options, Network Preferences, Languages gives options for turning on both Java and JavaScript

For Netscape v4.x

Edit, Preferences, Advanced gives options for turning on both Java and JavaScript

For Microsoft Internet Explorer v5.x

Tools, Internet Options..., Security, Custom Level... is where you'll find the Java options

To see a bit of what a site can see about you (the time on your PC, where your mouse is etc) try Magog.

Cookies

Cookies are small files stored on YOUR computer by the site you're visiting. Mostly they're so you can be tracked by the site you're on. But they can be used to track you as you go from site to site.

I use Accept only cookies that get sent back to the originating server. Warn me before accepting a cookie is a good idea, but some sites I regularly use have 5 or more cookies per page, and this option really slows down navigating that site.

For Netscape v3.x

Options, Network Preferences, Protocols gives an option simply to show an alert before Accepting a Cookie

For Netscape v4.x

Edit, Preferences, Advanced gives a number of options for Cookies

For Microsoft Internet Explorer v5.x

Tools, Internet Options..., Security, Custom Level... is where you'll find the Cookie options

Cookie Central and especially the FAQ is a great source of infomation

Important

Whilst I believe that the information on this site, and particularly this page, is accurate, it is offered in good faith. For subjects as important as security you must seek professional advice.

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