Posted: 4/23/2009 2:40:36 PM EDT
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Is there an appliance for home networks that does virus protection? We have IBM datapower appliances at work that do all kinds of security, including virus scans, of all traffic coming in. Is there an inexpensive home version of this? I am feeling a little vulnerable now with just a wimpy NetGear router between me and the internet. |
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Is there an appliance for home networks that does virus protection? We have IBM datapower appliances that do all kinds of security, including virus scans, of all traffic coming in. Is there an inexpensive home version of this? I am feeling a little vulnerable now with just a wimpy NetGear router between me and the internet. easy, fork over the $ for said appliance.... done. 
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| I don't know of any by name but I'm pretty sure they do exist (yeah I know that's not very helpful). However on the cheap, if you have the knowledge to set it up a cheap Linux box acting as a gateway with Snort installed should be useful. An actual virus scan (eg of an email attachment) would probably require another piece of software though. |
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Quoted: I don't know of any by name but I'm pretty sure they do exist (yeah I know that's not very helpful). However on the cheap, if you have the knowledge to set it up a cheap Linux box acting as a gateway with Snort installed should be useful. An actual virus scan (eg of an email attachment) would probably require another piece of software though. Yeah, just don't want to mess with another box on the network, already have several, a plug and go appliance would be cool, if one exists cheap enough for home networks. One of the reasons I ask this question, is I logged into my router today for the first time in a long time, and see in the logs that a bunch of denied access attempts are logged, like someone is probing my ip address.
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Thanks, but that is a little more than I wanted to spend. I was hoping something under $200, but I guess it doesn't exist. May do the linux box option.
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Thanks, but that is a little more than I wanted to spend. I was hoping something under $200, but I guess it doesn't exist. May do the linux box option. Doesn't exist at your price AFAIK. And not even all of those will check for a virus. You best stick with a software solution. |
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Thanks, but that is a little more than I wanted to spend. I was hoping something under $200, but I guess it doesn't exist. May do the linux box option. A firewall appliance that does SPI is going to start at a grand, at the lowest. |
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Quoted: Quoted: Thanks, but that is a little more than I wanted to spend. I was hoping something under $200, but I guess it doesn't exist. May do the linux box option. A firewall appliance that does SPI is going to start at a grand, at the lowest. Actually I just found this, but it doesn't get a lot of good reviews. |
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Thanks, but that is a little more than I wanted to spend. I was hoping something under $200, but I guess it doesn't exist. May do the linux box option. A firewall appliance that does SPI is going to start at a grand, at the lowest. Actually I just found this, but it doesn't get a lot of good reviews. And just like the SOHO routers, it's going to burn up in 6 months. Honestly, while building another box will be a PITA, you're not going to touch the price or flexibility. |
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Interesting, thanks! |
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Is that a new thing, or several years old? Hard to tell with web sites like that.
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Is your IP address getting probed all the time common now a days? It is from several different IP addresses (according to the logs), but just kinda freaks me out. Very very common. And you can pix up a used Cisco PIX-520 for $100 and it does SPI. ETA: A firewall isn't what you are looking for, you're looking more for an IPS/IDS....try Snort. |
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Is that a new thing, or several years old? Hard to tell with web sites like that.
Looks like they got acquired by NetGear.... |
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Is that a new thing, or several years old? Hard to tell with web sites like that.
Looks like they got acquired by NetGear.... Netgear.. *spit* |
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Quoted: What is wrong with netgear?Quoted: Quoted: Is that a new thing, or several years old? Hard to tell with web sites like that. Looks like they got acquired by NetGear.... Netgear.. *spit* My router is under attack.
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What is wrong with netgear?Quoted:
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Is that a new thing, or several years old? Hard to tell with web sites like that.
Looks like they got acquired by NetGear.... Netgear.. *spit* My router is under attack.
I've had less luck with them than with others. I prefer the Linksys stuff anymore, but it all blows up eventually. |
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Also, your router will always be under "attack". Just the nature of being online. But will it hold up? Are 13 yo kids perusing my tax returns, etc.? Keep your router user/pass secure and the wireless secure and you will be fine. If using WEP, look at using WPA for wireless.. |
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Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: Also, your router will always be under "attack". Just the nature of being online. But will it hold up? Are 13 yo kids perusing my tax returns, etc.? Keep your router user/pass secure and the wireless secure and you will be fine. If using WEP, look at using WPA for wireless.. I have done all that, hope this little router is up to the job for now. |
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My router is under attack. There are people all over the Internet running port scanners, searching every known address to see what ports might be open. When they get to your router/firewall, they will get no response (unless you've manually opened a port) and will move on. They are looking for people who don't have any type of firewall and have open ports that they might be able to exploit. As long as you are connected to the Internet, this will happen. But since you are behind a firewall, that isn't a problem. What IS a problem is if you go to a site and allow a program to be installed (clicking OK on a pop-up, or downloading "BritneySpearsNAKED.jpg.exe" and clicking on it) that infects you with a virus. The virus can then initiate an outbound connection that allows a hacker to control your computer. It's like sneaking into a theater by having your friend pay to get in, then open the exit door and let the rest of you in for free. A software firewall (or an expensive router with SPI) can stop this too, or at least alert you that it's occuring, depending on how you have it configured. But as you've seen, the more advanced hardware routers aren't cheap -Troy |
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FWIW, many companies/government entities that could afford another solution still use snort as an IDS/IPS.
As far as cheap firewalls go, look at some of the older used Juniper stuff. The 5XP and 5XTs are great for a home network and cost about the same as a Netgear/Linksys solution. Some Cisco PIX are out there cheap, but I prefer the Junipers. The net is kind of a free for all. Chances are you cannot secure your home network enough to really make it secure, but you can make it a big enough pain in the ass that they will move on to the next one. |
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You guys think these older Cisco routers are worth messing with? Pretty cheap on eBay. I actually want to start learning some of this stuff. |
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Thanks, but that is a little more than I wanted to spend. I was hoping something under $200, but I guess it doesn't exist. May do the linux box option. I switched to Linux a couple of years ago and haven't looked back. Concerning viruses, Linux viruses are almost non-existent, and if one cropped up, it could do limited damage thanks to Linux's user permissions setup. Oh, and the price is right for the OS and the software. 
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You guys think these older Cisco routers are worth messing with?[div] 2600 series and above are worthwhile. 2500 series are great for learning some routing stuff, but limited otherwise. 2500 series tend to have some TokenRing interfaces which are useless, but some have serial interfaces which are great for learning. |
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Quoted: Quoted: Thanks!You guys think these older Cisco routers are worth messing with? 2600 series and above are worthwhile. 2500 series are great for learning some routing stuff, but limited otherwise. 2500 series tend to have some TokenRing interfaces which are useless, but some have serial interfaces which are great for learning. I am actually getting motivated to learn this stuff. |
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I found this, not sure I want a cert, but some of these kits would be a fun way to learn a few things about it. |
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If you want to learn networking its not a bad idea to narrow down what skills might suit you the best. There are big differences between learning WAN versus LAN technology. The CCNA cert is not a bad start for overall skills, but there is a lot of boring theory that isn't really practical if you are not going to make a career out of it. Subnet masking is enough to make most people swear off networking forever.
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Quoted: Nah, I am up to the challenge.If you want to learn networking its not a bad idea to narrow down what skills might suit you the best. There are big differences between learning WAN versus LAN technology. The CCNA cert is not a bad start for overall skills, but there is a lot of boring theory that isn't really practical if you are not going to make a career out of it. Subnet masking is enough to make most people swear off networking forever. |
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Thanks, but that is a little more than I wanted to spend. I was hoping something under $200, but I guess it doesn't exist. May do the linux box option. A firewall appliance that does SPI is going to start at a grand, at the lowest. I actually just spent a half hour going through every option on my wimpy router. It does have a SPI firewall (I didn't know that), and it is enabled. The logs don't show any more probing, so I guess I am good for now. Looks like I can limit access to specific MAC addresses too, so may spend an afternoon setting that up as well. |
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I have a sonicwall TZ180 that does what you are looking for. It is about 400 a month to do it though. Ouch! I bet eventually we will have consumer grade routers that do virus protection on the incoming traffic. It would be nice to have it at the doorway in, and not on every PC in the network. |
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Ouch! I bet eventually we will have consumer grade routers that do virus protection on the incoming traffic. It would be nice to have it at the doorway in, and not on every PC in the network. That is a plan for FAIL. It's like putting lock on your front gate and leaving guns, money and jewels laying around the house for all your visitors to see. You have to think LAYERS of security. With all the free anti-virus out there and with most OSes having built in firewalls, there is no excuse for not having those enabled and up and running. Can't map a drive or a printer? Waaa! Figure out how to add it to the OS firewall and make it work. No modern corporation relies on network FWs alone to protect servers or workstations. Every box must have anti-virus and OS updates to reduce vulnerabilities. Financial data gets extra FWs and encrypted databases. Layers, baby, layers is where it's at. Gringop |
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Ouch! I bet eventually we will have consumer grade routers that do virus protection on the incoming traffic. It would be nice to have it at the doorway in, and not on every PC in the network. That is a plan for FAIL. It's like putting lock on your front gate and leaving guns, money and jewels laying around the house for all your visitors to see. You have to think LAYERS of security. With all the free anti-virus out there and with most OSes having built in firewalls, there is no excuse for not having those enabled and up and running. Can't map a drive or a printer? Waaa! Figure out how to add it to the OS firewall and make it work. No modern corporation relies on network FWs alone to protect servers or workstations. Every box must have anti-virus and OS updates to reduce vulnerabilities. Financial data gets extra FWs and encrypted databases. Layers, baby, layers is where it's at. Gringop Ok, I am just talking a simple home network, not a corporate thing, but I get what you are saying. |
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No modern corporation relies on network FWs alone to protect servers or workstations. Every box must have anti-virus and OS updates to reduce vulnerabilities. Financial data gets extra FWs and encrypted databases. Layers, baby, layers is where it's at. You would be surprised. Defense in depth is a fantastic idea, it just doesn't happen in most places. In most places its all about most function for user, not most security. |
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