Windows Firewall: It's a lose-lose proposition

Sometimes you just can't win. That's the way it is with the Windows Firewall.

By Dennis O'Reilly

Sometimes you just can't win. That's the way it is with the Windows Firewall. The one in XP can't monitor connections from your PC to the outside world--which is how botnets, Trojans, and other malware operate. The firewall in Vista can block outbound connections, but this feature is off by default, and it's practically impossible to create filters to block selective outbound links.

On the one hand, Microsoft claims that you don't need outbound filtering if you use the Windows Defender anti-spyware app to keep the snoops off your PC in the first place. On the other, it sells the $50-per-year Windows Live OneCare service that does let you filter outbound connections selectively. Go figure. ... Go to source