A firewall is a type of software that monitors all incoming network traffic while you're online and allows in only the connections that are known and trusted.

Without a firewall, your computer is basically an "open door" to hackers. All of your private information such as passwords, credit card numbers you've used for online purchases and documents that you don't want to share with anyone are all available for hackers to steal. Whether you have a dial-up, broadband or DSL connection, every minute that your computer is connected to the Internet, it is at risk.

Many people mistakenly think that the anti-virus software that came with their PC protects them completely from hackers. But anti-virus software does nothing to secure your computer against direct hacker attacks.

'Clean Slate' secures your private information
The Shield Firewall 2.0's 'Clean Slate' function deletes all of your private information from the hard drive including credit card numbers, telephone numbers and e-mail addresses. It also deletes all of your cookies, histories, temporary Internet files, URL history, auto-match list, temporary system files, recently viewed pages, 'run' command history and password records.

Advanced scheduling features
The Shield Firewall 2.0 users have the capability of scheduling a specific time period in which the PC is allowed to be online.

Event tracking records all activity
The Shield Firewall 2.0 records all network activities, allowing you to see any events or actions that have occurred on your computer.

Intruder Alerts
Only the applications to which you grant authorization are able to connect to the Internet. If an unauthorized connection is attempted, a pop-up message alerts you. This prevents viruses such as "Trojan Horse" from sharing your personal information online without your approval.

Pre-set security level
Users do not need to understand how the firewall works in order to use it. Its pre-defined security levels start protecting your system immediately upon installation.

One button disconnect
Allows you to stop or resume all network connections to or from your system with one simple click.

Auto-disconnect
Disconnects your PC automatically if the system is idle for a pre-set amount of time. Disconnecting from the network ensures security since no one else will be able to connect to your computer.