Archived from groups: alt.sys.pc-clone.dell (
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Whether or not the firewall asks for IE 6.0 or IEXPLORE.EXE is splitting hairs.
Yes, you're right that Zone Alarm and other firewalls that check outgoing
traffic will ask the user about IEXPLORE.EXE by its executable program name, not
its function. Yes, it sure would be nice if the firewall asked nicely whether
Internet Explorer was allowed to access the internet, rather than asking about
the executable program name.
My point was to distinguish between IE 6.0 and IE 6.1 as examples where the
firewall knows the difference between an older version and a newer version of
the same executable program, because it keeps track of the properties of the
program.
Yes indeedie, telling the firewall that IE can have access to the internet DOES
open up IE to all manner of evil varmints. This is EXACTLY the same as if one
were using the XP SP2 firewall instead. With the XP SP2 firewall in place, IE
or any other program) has free and unobstructed access to the internet. IE's
Internet Options allow the user to lock down some of the security, blocking the
use of potentially harmful usage.
Did I not make it clear that you only have to tell ZA or Norton firewall once
that a program is authorized to access the internet? Sheesh! ... Ben Myers
On Wed, 08 Sep 2004 22:36:06 -0400, William P.N. Smith wrote:
>ben_myers_spam_me_not @ charter.net (Ben Myers) wrote:
>>For example, the first time a dialog box pops up telling you that IE 6.0 wanted
>>to access the internet, you would respond to allow it to always have outgoing
>>access.
>
>Two problems here. First, it doesn't ask if IE 6.0 (or Internet
>Explorer, or anything else recognizable by name to the average user)
>wants access, it asks if IEXPLORE.EXE can have access (if it's not
>asking about something really incomprehensible, like wisptis.exe).
>
>Secondly, by telling the firewall that Internet Explorer can do
>anything it wants on the internet, you are leaving yourself open for
>the next bit of malware that overflows a buffer or hands the OS
>something that looks and feels like a music file to the browser, but
>which the OS knows is a .SCR (and knows just how to handle).
>
>Most users (not you and me, and everyone here, but common ordinary
>people) can't properly parse the question "Is it OK to do this?" for
>all values of "this" that a firewall is going to ask them. It's only
>going to annoy them to the point where they _always_ say yes.
>
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