Author Topic: Network Scan Issue  (Read 7874 times)

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Offline midnight

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Re: Network Scan Issue
« Reply #15 on: June 26, 2016, 03:19:35 PM »
I didn't see outbound protection (default off). I changed the settings to block outbound protection to block but had to change it back to allow. After I changed the settings to block I got an error message on the SafeZone Browser....
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Offline Pondus

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Re: Network Scan Issue
« Reply #16 on: June 26, 2016, 03:23:12 PM »
you are once again fiddling with stuff you dont understand just to make your day more complicated   

Soon we will see another of those  "I wish i did not do that, how do i go back"  posts


http://www.howtogeek.com/172349/why-you-dont-need-an-outbound-firewall-on-your-laptop-or-desktop-pc/

Ask Leo  >> https://askleo.com



« Last Edit: August 05, 2016, 01:26:22 AM by Pondus »

Offline midnight

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Re: Network Scan Issue
« Reply #17 on: June 26, 2016, 03:36:08 PM »
Soon we will see another of those  "I wish i did not do that, how do i go back"  posts.

No, you won't.
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Offline midnight

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Re: Network Scan Issue
« Reply #18 on: June 26, 2016, 04:38:20 PM »
Should I set the firewall to restore default settings?
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Offline mchain

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Re: Network Scan Issue
« Reply #19 on: June 27, 2016, 09:14:27 PM »
@ -midnight,
Resetting your firewall back to default settings shouldn't hurt things, but, in the future, write down only the changes you do make and make only one change at a time to make things much easier, each one followed by a reboot of system. 

If you are really interested in discovering what you need to know about anything computer related follow Pondus' advice by visiting https://askleo.com/
Also read:  http://www.howtogeek.com/172349/why-you-dont-need-an-outbound-firewall-on-your-laptop-or-desktop-pc/

<snip>
Why Outbound Firewalls Are Pointless For Most People

The reality is that outbound firewalls aren’t a useful security tool for the average user. Here’s why:
  • Outbound firewalls just prevent applications on your computer from connecting to the Internet. If you see that a piece of malware is trying to connect to the Internet, you’ve already lost because it’s running on your computer. The malware can do a lot of damage without Internet access.
  • If a malicious program were running on your computer and had access to your system, it could likely open its own holes in your firewall software. Again, once the malicious software is running on your system, you’ve already lost.
  • Malware could piggyback on other programs to communicate over the Internet. For example, a piece of malware could open a special web address in your browser to ping a server, capture the page that the server sends back, and use the data. It’s difficult to completely isolate an application from the Internet.
    Outbound firewalls aren’t an effective defense against malware. You should focus on using an effective antivirus program, keeping your software up-to-date, and making sure you don’t have Java installed. That will keep your PC much more secure than using an antivirus program that won’t help much after the fact. If your computer is compromised, it’s compromised.
<end snip>

Suggest reading the entire thing about outbound firewalls per the link above.  You should be using a robust backup and recovery system anyway if you are going to make changes to your system(s).
Windows 10 Home 64-bit 22H2 Avast Premier Security version 24.1.6099 (build 24.1.88821.762)  UI version 1.0.797
 UI version 1.0.788.  Windows 11 Home 23H2 - Windows 11 Pro 23H2 Avast Premier Security version 24.2.6105 (build 24.1.8918.827) UI version 1.0.801

Offline DavidR

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Re: Network Scan Issue
« Reply #20 on: June 27, 2016, 10:37:51 PM »
I would certainly contest that outbound firewalls aren't required.

If an outbound connection is made from your system, the corresponding inbound connections sails right past your firewall as essentially it has permission.

You only have to view the viruses and worms forum to see the number of URL:Mal alerts, etc. resulting from outbound connections by your system. And the only thing that stopped them was avast as they were trying to connect to malicious sites.

Any hidden or undetected malware on your system would be able to make out outbound calls to whatever site unmolested. By saying any malware on your system could already be creating holes in your system, well why not just give up. Not all malware will be capable if doing that straight off, a lot (viruses and worms) have a connection to malicious sites to bolster what is already on the system.

EDIT: Not to mention this article was Published 09/17/13, a lot has changed since then, firewall, antivirus and malware since then.
« Last Edit: June 27, 2016, 10:39:43 PM by DavidR »
Windows 10 Home 64bit/ Acer Aspire F15/ Intel Core i5 7200U 2.5GHz, 8GB DDR4 memory, 256GB SSD, 1TB HDD/ avast! free 24.2.6105 (build 24.2.8918.824) UI 1.0.799/ Firefox, uBlock Origin, uMatrix/ MailWasher Pro/ Avast! Mobile Security

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Re: Network Scan Issue
« Reply #21 on: June 30, 2016, 05:10:39 AM »
Thanks again, Mchain.  :D

Speaking of DNS leaks. I use a VPN and tend to do the tests quite regularly.

Avast have upgraded me for a short period to try their new version and since then it shows that my Avast is 'leaking', whereas when I had the basic/free version the results never showed any leaks at all.

Can anyone explain why this is and if there's anything I need to do to stop it?