firewall works as a security doorway that stops unknown and seemingly harmful and therefore unauthorized entry to your personal computer network system. It acts as the first line of defense against programs that may harm your personal information. A good firewall protects your information from trojans, spyware, adware, hackers, malware and worms. Firewalls are security-ensuring schemes that manage and decide who can gain access and send information to your computer network. Firewalls help both hardware and software. To ensure tighter security, most systems use a combination of each. All messages to and from your computer pass first through the firewall. The firewall checks each and every message and bars those that are against the security criteria or rules laid down by your computer.

Application gateway – this installs security methods on particular applications (FTP, Telnet, etc.) Packet filters – studies each operation running on your computer minutely and allows or discards according to rules set by your computer Circuit-level gateway – provides safety-ensuring techniques for connections like Transmission Control Protocol or TCP and User Datagram Protocol or UDP Proxy server - any message entering or exiting your network must pass this proxy server because it effectively conceals your computer address Superior security is also provided by encrypted data. Many network systems use this method to strengthen safety measures. To protect data that passes your computer network, installation of firewalls is a must. Plus, if you are a regular web surfer, the presence of a firewall becomes mandatory.