Windows firewall

[Guest]

Hi
Everytime I start my computer a bubble comes up with a warning I need to put
my firewall on. I click it to turn it on but next time I switch on my
computer it is there again and I have to turn it on. Why has it started
doing this as I never use to get this message. Any help would be great,
Thank you.

 

[Detlev Dreyer]

Everytime I start my computer a bubble comes up with a warning I need to
put my firewall on. I click it to turn it on but next time I switch on
my computer it is there again and I have to turn it on. Why has it
started doing this as I never use to get this message.

If you didn't make any system changes (incl. installations) prior to the
first encounter of this problem, the only explanation is Malware not being
interested in your firewall. This is especially true if you tend to
logon (and surf) with administrative(!) privileges even if not necessary.

 

[M.I.5¾]

Hi
Everytime I start my computer a bubble comes up with a warning I need to
put
my firewall on. I click it to turn it on but next time I switch on my
computer it is there again and I have to turn it on. Why has it started
doing this as I never use to get this message. Any help would be great,
Thank you.

The windows firewall isn't worth the hard disk space it occupies. Leave it
off and install something better. Almost anything is better (anything other
than Norton that is).

 

[Alan]

I'm a fan of Zone Alarm Free, which can be downloaded at:
http://www.download.com/3000-2092-10039884.html

Alan

 

[Guest]

Thank you for that, I will try it.

I'm a fan of Zone Alarm Free, which can be downloaded at:
http://www.download.com/3000-2092-10039884.html

Alan

 

[M.I.5¾]

I'm a fan of Zone Alarm Free, which can be downloaded at:
http://www.download.com/3000-2092-10039884.html

Zone Alarm is pretty effective, and I used to be a big fan. The current
version seems to have some unwanted baggage.

1. It slows the boot process down while it sets itself up, by a considerable
margin (minutes). Though to be fair, the older versions weren't fast in
this regard.

2. It sometimes has some unexpected (and unobvious) side effects. These
vary, but symptoms seen include (but not restricted to); inability to change
some drive letters; complete disabling of DVD-RAM drives; Windows Explorer
(not IE) crashing immediately after reboot when something is started (and
random crashes thereafter).

Reverting to the backup immediately before installation solves the issue.
Uninstalling Zone Alarm does not resolve the problem - the damage is done by
this time. Doing a subsequent System Restore doesn't help either.

 

[Rock]

Thank you for that, I will try it.

Installing a different firewall is not the solution to your current problem.
You need to fix what is causing the firewall to be turned off, particularly
if it's malware.

Contrary to the other opinions in here, the windows firewall works fine for
what it does. It does not monitor outbound traffic, but outbound monitoring
using a host based software firewall can be easily gone around. Any
sophisticated malware can get around that.

If you want to use a 3rd party firewall I recommend against the current
version of Zone Alarm. It is quite bloated. Look at either Sunbelt
Software's Kerio Personal Firewall or Comodo Personal firewall.

 

[PA Bear]

Assuming you don't have a third-party firewall installed, the machine's
probably infected with hijackware (which would explain the other bizarre
behavior about which you've been posting in other newsgroups.)

Run a /thorough/ check for hijackware, including posting your hijackthis log
to an appropriate forum.

Checking for/Help with Hijackware
http://aumha.org/a/parasite.htm
http://aumha.org/a/quickfix.htm
http://aumha.net/viewtopic.php?t=5878
http://wiki.castlecops.com/Malware_Removal_and_Prevention:_Introduction
http://mvps.org/winhelp2002/unwanted.htm
http://inetexplorer.mvps.org/data/prevention.htm
http://inetexplorer.mvps.org/tshoot.html
http://www.mvps.org/sramesh2k/Malware_Defence.htm
http://defendingyourmachine2.blogspot.com/
http://www.elephantboycomputers.com/page2.html#Removing_Malware

When all else fails, HijackThis v1.99.1
(http://aumha.org/downloads/hijackthis.zip) is the preferred tool to use.
It will help you to both identify and remove any hijackware/spyware with
assistance from an expert. **Post your log to
http://forums.spybot.info/forumdisplay.php?f=22,
http://castlecops.com/forum67.html,
http://forums.subratam.org/index.php?showforum=7,
http://aumha.net/viewforum.php?f=30, or other appropriate forums for expert
analysis, not here.**

If the procedures look too complex - and there is no shame in admitting this
isn't your cup of tea - take the machine to a local, reputable and
independent (i.e., not BigBoxStoreUSA) computer repair shop.

 

[Guest]

Thank you for all your advice I am trying different things you have mentioned