Sygate user... time for a change?

Hello there.
This is my first post on Wilders, so go easy on me

Anyway, ive been using Sygate Personal Firewall Pro for some time now (year or more). I love it, simple, light on resources and really easy to use. However im growing concerned with the new "techniques hackers use".

Should i change my firewall? Is SPF still a decent firewall even if it aint been updated for some time? Ive run Pcflanks and other webbased "security" tests and "aced" them all (all the ports stealth and such). Am I in danger for using a old firewall even tho it aces the tests? Ive never had a "hacker" situation too

And to what firewall should i change? Kerio since its easy to use (so ive read)? Comodo? Look n' Stop?

Thank you in advanced

 

Re: Sygate user... time for a chance?

Welcome to Wilders !

Depening on what version of Sygate you use or used ... may be ...

If you want to choose here is what you can choose from:
Zone Alarm free
Comodo free
Jetico
Kerio
Outpost

I prefer ZoneAlarm , in my opinion classic and perfect in protection . The most important -> Easy to use .
Comodo is also excellent when talking about protection but is more complicated and some people may get confused with it.

However , the most important is you to choose what best fits your needs . All of the above are very good and you can try and decide on your own

Regards!

 

Re: Sygate user... time for a chance?

Im using the Spf pro 5.5 build 2710 with the latest signature file(old )
Should i change? Or does it offer good protection(compared to Kerio for instance)?

 

Re: Sygate user... time for a chance?

I am not a firewall specialist . I my self would change because it is old and new versions of the current firewalls offer more feautures . However , wait for sb else's more professional answer

 

Re: Sygate user... time for a chance?

I'm still using Sygate. In my security setup, its perfect. And imo its still better than 90% of the pf out there.

 

Re: Sygate user... time for a chance?

if sygate works well for you, then stay with it.

and if youre worried about leaktests, u can try using a HIPS (like SSM) alongside Sygate.

 

Re: Sygate user... time for a chance?

I agree with WSFuser. Sygate Pro is still one of the best FF out there. Keep it, no reason for changing.

 

Re: Sygate user... time for a chance?

This was one the solutions i thought of

Thank you for the quick answers fellas

 

Re: Sygate user... time for a chance?

Also as an old Sygate user, even though I like older kerio 2.1.5 more, but miss Sygate's great logging.
I would say that new threats, passing leaktests etc, that use those techniques, they are taken better care by adding a hips program like PG or SSM or some community one like prevx1, though i have no idea how it works, than changing a working firewall.

Jarmo

 

Hey if you like sygate then stick with it, it does its job well. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles of the latest firewalls but thats sort of good as its not bloated and runs great.

 

Which is the latest version of sygate firewall pro? Is it 5.5 or 5.6? Thanks

 

The last release was 5.6, i'm not too sure of the exact version number and whether or not there were more than one version of 5.6

 

I moved on a long time ago as Sygate never had the best outbound control. Its logging is great, its advanced rules are great, its inbound block/stealthing is great, its IPS was ok, but everything else is just bleh these days.

To be specific it has problems distinguishing which program is trying to use a system service to access the internet (Kaspersky Antivirus email monitoring does that among others); so have to allow the system service access to the internet...which is just bad. It also has no proxy loopback monitoring, so programs like Proxomitron could let anything by.

It also has compatibility problems with some new network chips. It prevents computers from entering standby. The 5.6 beta/debug versions fixed some of that, but they are just that...unfinished.

I use the Comodo firewall now. It shines where Sygate didn't but also lacks the nice (packet) logging Sygate had. It has a GUI similar to ZoneAlarm (the memory/cpu footprint is similar to Sygate however) which might be a turnoff for some. I'm still struggling to accept that type of GUI myself, but it blows other firewalls away with the bang for the......oh wait what buck?!

 

The last pro version that was sold, final too since symantec decided to pull it off, was 5.5.2710.
There may have been later versions as beta and accepting your registering code, but personally I would stay away from them or at least keep a back up copy of what you have now as install. Sygate in my memory as I kept in touch with it always released same version of program both for free and pro. Some features stripped, but always working very well.

Sadly the latest free 5.6 was a beta and never of course was released as pro. That one that is still open downloaded by google easy, but in my help site in sig there still is a working link to 5.5.2710. That of course same as pro is not recognized by XP security center, which is not a big problem. Nor is my current kerio 2.1.5 that is a bit older.

Regarding loopback address handling, yes. If you run some local proxy software, the SPF loopback handling lets out programs.
In some ways adding a hips program like PG or SSM, even free versions, can help in that department, cause you will still have the sygate loggings for outgoing connections to inspect.
Running some processguarding software, even if you run an antivirus like Avast with local proxies, you would get asked by those kind of hips even if not by SPF for programs like browers and emails clients that would otherwise get passed even if blocked.