Firewall Testing

Once you find out that you can test the security of your computer online, it makes a lot of sense. While on the Internet, your computer may have 65,535 "ports" open. If the ports are open, a hacker or script kiddie may call. There are many online test sites. You need to be a bit skeptical about which of them to rely on. As a rule of thumb, do not rely solely on a testing site provided by a company that wants to sell you a personal firewall. Once you install a personal firewall, testing is needed to make sure that the firewall is serving its intended purpose and that you have configured it correctly.

• Security Space Desktop Security Audit: A basic audit or a single test is free, the full Home PC audit service is $10 per year.
• PC Flank's Tests -- Quick, Stealth, Browser, Trojans, Advanced Port Scanner, and Exploits Test
• HackerWhacker: The first use is free; for home use, one scan is $5, one-month is $10, or three months is $20.
• Free firewall tests, Jim Maurer, AuditMyPc
• Sygate Online Services -- Quick, Stealth, Trojan, TCP, UDP and ICMP scans.
• McAfee's HackerWatch.org -- Simple Probe and Port Scan
• Shields Up! Steve Gibson

Another Kind of Test

To find out from direct experience why you need a personal firewall, we suggest that you try one. After a few days, use the report function to see how many times your computer has been scanned. Please note that many scans are not dangerous, for example, your cable/dsl Internet service provider may be checking to see that your connection is ok. For firewalls that are free for personal use, see our freeware page. Many vendors offer a free trial of their products, see our firewall software review page for choices and links. Whichever choice you make, check the vendor's website after you install your firewall for updates. The last step is to test the firewall to see how well it works and to make sure that you installed and configured it correctly.