Click the On (Recommended) radio button.Click both Notify me when Windows Firewall blocks a new program check boxes.Click both Turn on Windows Firewall radio buttons.Click Turn Windows Firewall on or off on the left side of the window.The Windows Firewall has been enabled by default since the release of Windows XP Service Pack 2, so chances are you’re already protected. The Windows Firewall should catch this and notify you that an unknown program is attempting to access the Internet.
After some time monitoring your Web browsing habits, the spyware component attempts to “phone home” to transmit its logs. For example, suppose you have unknowingly installed a program that turns out to have a spyware component. However, it’s still a good idea to enable the Windows Firewall, because it also protects your computer from unauthorized outbound connection attempts. If a router receives information that wasn’t requested - such as a random port scan - it discards the information. A router’s job is to take a request from a connected computer, send it out to the Internet, gather the requested information and route it back to the computer from which the request was originally made. As a regular computer user, the type of hacking that you need to be most concerned about is port scanning, in which a hacker uses an automatic script to probe random computers over the Internet for weaknesses. If your computer is behind a router that shares your Internet connection by giving every local computer a non-routable IP address like 192.168.0.2, you probably don’t have much to worry about because your router essentially already acts as a firewall. How can I make sure that the Windows Firewall is enabled, and enable it if it is turned off?”
I don’t know how to check my firewall settings, though. “I understand that Windows comes with a firewall that can help protect my computer from hacking attempts.