In physical buildings, a firewall is a brick structure that partitions between sections of a building. The idea is that if part of the building catches fire, it will burn only as far as the firewall, so that the entire building is not destroyed.
In computer terms, a firewall is a bit of software especially designed to watch the traffic coming in and out of your computer. It keeps an eye out for unwanted or undesirable traffic – such as hackers and botnets – and puts up a brick wall to keep them from accessing your computer. It can also prevent programs on your computer from accessing the internet; which, in some cases, is also undesirable.
While firewalls are not foolproof, they are very effective and especially important in businesses. Windows and Mac systems include built-in firewall software, which take care of themselves for the most part. If you have custom settings you’d like to apply, we can help you with that!