Linux Firewalls

What is a firewall?

• A firewall is a controlled gateway between one network and another (i.e. an intranet and the internet).
• It is not a universal panacea for computer security. You must follow other good security practices.

Why Firewalls?

• You cannot trust everyone. Some people take pleasure in hacking into machines. Not all are malicious but some are!
• Your computer holds private/confidential data an you have a duty to protect it.
• You want to limit access from within your private network to specific external information/services (i.e. not mpeg3’s)
• You want to monitor/record traffic for audit/security purposes. Beware of privacy laws!

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