On Sat, 2004-02-21 at 18:12, Chris Gehlker wrote:
> On Feb 21, 2004, at 2:54 PM, ec wrote:
>
> > Chris, total newbie here, just thought I needed stuff.
> > Didn't know it had 4 ports, never been on dsl before
> > nor been around one to even look at the modem.
> >
> > Thanks.
> >
> > I want a smoothwall firewall even IF it has 4 ports.
> > Wife is paranoid about that. She wont go online
> > without either being on a 'don't care machine' or
> > knoppix live cd and the 'don't care machine'. But I am
> > getting dsl because dialup is too slow with two people
> > trying to use it at once and I am tired of waiting
> > hours for her to finish and vice versa.
>
> I don't think she understands what a firewall really does. The way
> Qwest configures their routers, only the router itself is addressable.
> Your computers are on a private network behind the router. It's like
> having an old style switchboard operator that only puts through
> outgoing calls.
>
> Where they really screw up, though, is they set the wireless side
> completely open by default. The wireless side even broadcasts its own
> network name. Note that the wireless is 'behind' your router so any
> protection between your LAN and the internet has already been bypassed.
>
> So I'd for get the Smoothwall and concentrate on turning off the
> wireless.
---
There's nothing wrong with having a firewall in place even though the
machine is behind the router. The router could get hacked, there's been
instances of that occurring, perhaps not with the Actiontec (yet
anyway).
Another machine on the lan could get compromised - shit happens. She may
have data on that computer that she considers too sensitive to treat
casually.
Based upon that, I wouldn't suggest that having a smoothwall or other
type of iptables based firewall protection on a computer even though it
is behind a router to be a bad idea.
Craig
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