The Internet has become the most popular and comfortable way to communicate and gather information. Nevertheless, a certain level of protection is needed, since there is plenty of malware on the Web waiting for a victim.

Privatefirewall is an application that allows you to add extra security measures for your system. Its main advantage is that it allows you to prevent intrusions on the computer and protect it from information theft.

This application integrates several different protection methods, which include a desktop firewall, an application manager, a process monitor, port tracking and traffic filtering. Furthermore, you can set different protection profiles for home, office and remote access.

Using Privatefirewall, you are able to easily customize the Internet and network security features to a level that suits your needs and preferences. This can be done easily, as the program offers you a user-friendly interface. Nevertheless, it is advisable that beginners use the default configuration of the application because rules granting/denying access to various programs could work against you unless you know what you’re doing. For example, activating some rules can lead to blocking network file sharing.

The application allows you to create a ‘Trusted sites / IP addresses’ list, as well as a black list for untrusted websites and IP addresses. Thus, Privatefirewall automatically blocks the access to the web pages that are found on the black list. Also, you can enable the email anomaly detection, in order to filter the received messages.

A list of all the applications that attempted to access the Internet is also displayed. For every one of them, you can configure the rules to allow or deny online access. Processes can be filtered for potentially malicious system API calls, thus blocking the dangerous ones. It also tracks all system ports, protecting them against unauthorized entries.

For every detected activity, the program displays an alert and you can allow or block the corresponding process. However, you are offered the possibility to change the notification method.

Privatefirewall monitors system behavior to identify potential threats and protect your private data, allowing you to easily customize Internet security settings and untrusted websites.

Here are some key features of „Privatefirewall“:

Proactive, Multi-Layered Defense:

· Advanced packet filtering – Proprietary stateful packet inspection technology monitors all communication between the PC and the Internet and detects and blocks all unauthorized traffic. Privatefirewall allows the simple adjustment of security levels (High/Low/Custom) to establish different degrees of security for Internet and Local Network access.

· Ultimate Application Control – Highly configurable Application Control Console enables you to specify which and precisely how applications can access the Internet.

· Process Detection – Prevents viruses, trojans, worms and other malware by tracking all trusted processes and providing alerts when any potentially malicious process attempts to run.

· System Anomaly Detection – System Anomaly Detection Engine baselines normal usage based on system variables such as CPU utilization, thread count, and others. Normal use patterns of running applications are monitored and alerts are generated as unusual activity is detected.

· Intelligent Tray Alerts – Compact, user-friendly tray alerts provide detailed information regarding security events, offer native web search for convenient investigation, and pre-set intelligent “time-out” responses.

· Stealth Mode – PC is invisible when online and stealth to potential intruders.

· Port Tracking and Reporting – All ports are monitored to prohibit unauthorized scanning and system intrusion. Detailed reports are generated on all port scan and other reconnaissance attempts in addition to instantaneous on-screen alerts.

· Email Anomaly Detection – Privatefirewall mitigates the impact of attacks targeting email clients by tracking the volume and frequency of outbound emails. Privatefirewall alerts you and blocks unacceptable deviations from normal email activity.

Application Control and Firewall Policy Management:

· Monitor all traffic to and from your PC and prevent trusted applications from being “Hi-Jacked” to steal local or network-accessible files.

· The Process Monitor adds an important layer of defense to conventional firewall protection by identifying process-level behavior characteristics of intrusion techniques and malware activity.

· Control which applications can access the Internet, and whether to permit/block every application with each usage or make permissions permanent. Specific IPs and/or Websites can be blocked or allowed access.

· Define application specific or global packet filtering rules that can be applied to incoming, outgoing or bi-directional traffic.

· View or create advanced firewall reports sorted by Web, Mail, or System access attempts spanning Hours, Days, Weeks, or customized time periods.

Unmatched Ease of Use:

· Privatefirewall’s security presets deliver superior PC protection immediately upon installation. Setup and configuration are fully automatic right out of the box.

· One-click configuration of pre-defined security settings for Home, Office, and Remote profiles eliminate complicated application tuning.

· Privatefirewall conveniently detects connections to local networks and automatically sets rules that allow access within that network.

· A variety of custom configuration interfaces are easily accessible for advanced users.

· Privatefirewall is fully integrated with Windows XP Security Center.

Requirements:

· 486 Processor
· 16MB of RAM
· 5MB HD Space

What’s New in This Release:
· Updated GUI to allow removal of IPv6 addresses from the sites list even if IPv6 is not installed.
· Resolved isolated bsod issue observed on XP.
· Updated drivers reviewed and tested by Microsoft Winqual.