RE: [PCTECH] Need firewall protection,

["Dan Bale" <dbale@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

(Forgot to acknowledge the link to HowStuffWorks.com; I have been there
before for other stuff, and will check this out tonight.)

Adam, I loved the "simplistic" analogy for the "man in the middle" attack.
I am getting the impression from yours and others' replies that this type of
attack is unlikely, given the vast percentage of PC's are not protected with
any firewall, why would someone go through the extra complexity when there
are so many easy targets?  Still, are there any examples of this type of
attack, and are they referred to as "man in the middle" attacks?  (Or was
that just a term you or David coined in this thread?)

Which are the "bad" programs that don't notify you of the "dead bodies"?  Is
IE considered to be one of them?  Is it only browsers?  Or can it be
programs like Norton's Live Update, or other non-browser apps that go to the
internet?

I understand now that the "man in the middle" attack is not the router's
responsibility.  But that doesn't mean that I can call myself 100% protected
from an outside attack with the firewall/router.  This isn't a paranoia
thing; I understand there are risks in everything, but when something is
truly 100%, then I don't even think about the other possibilities.  And, if
I am to be security-conscious, I have to understand the possibilities.
Which is why I am asking all of these questions and truly appreciate all of
your responses!)

And, no, there is no wireless in my house, and won't be for the foreseeable
future.  Too new, too vunerable, don't trust it, and don't have any laptops.
Plus, air return ducts make for easy cable routing.  <g>

You bring up a good point, David.  Why isn't all internet traffic
SSL-encrpyted nowadays?  Isn't the overhead a non-factor with today's
systems?

Again, many, many thanks!
Dan