High-speed Internet access can leave your home network vulnerable to hackers — or just about any 11-year-old who conducts a �security hole� search on Google. Virus protection and a router aren�t enough; you need a personal firewall to filter, block, and fake out would-be attackers.
SPLURGE
SofaWare S-box
The S-box is the Cadillac of home firewalls. Based on the same tech that SofaWare�s parent company, Check Point, sells to Fortune 100 companies, the S-box sits between your Net connection and your PC, Mac, TiVo, and Wi-Fi gear. The firewall, which is also a four-port router, is hardware-based, so there�s no need to install it on multiple computers, and it won�t conflict with other programs on your hard drive.
$299, www.s-box.com.
BEST BUY
ZoneAlarm Pro 3.0
This software does a bang-up job of keeping your network invisible to hackers. If you do happen across an insidious threat (like a Trojan horse or a worm), the firewall delivers an onscreen warning. From there, it walks you through an action plan. After setup, the program runs in the background with no noticeable drag on connection speed.
$50, www.zonelabs.com.
OVERRATED
BlackICE PC Protection
While this is a formidable security app, you might never know it. Like most PC firewalls, it examines your computer�s contents and helps you create basic security settings. Unfortunately, BlackICE has a confusing interface and asks you too many overly complicated questions (queries that only an IT person would know). Also, its recent addition of application monitoring feels like a work in progress.
$40, www.iss.net.
PLAY
Gear Mama
REUBEN WU Ladytron The tunes at the top of his playlist:
.hack Attack
The Risk Taker Returns
Jesse James� Wild Rides
Streaming Consciousness
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Valley of the Kings, edited by Kent R. Weeks
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Too Cool for Cash
Beta Suite
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