ICMP Echo Reply

Does anyone know if Online Armor protects you against ICMP echo reply pings?

Am I right to say Echo Reply pings are one of the first tools an attacker will use to see if your box responds?

 

hxxp://www.inetdaemon.com/tutorials/internet/icmp/echo.shtml
Hello, The above link will explain in detail the protocol.

Honestly in my opinion, ping replies aren't something you should worry about at all. What IS important is that all your ports are closed.
In layman terms...Think of is as a knock on the front door. If you "reply: Who is it?" and they respond with an unknown name "Sorry, I did not solicit this encounter, I'm not letting you in." As long as the windows and doors are locked, it doesn't matter if they know your home.


You can test if your ports are closed by visiting GRC shields upKeep in mind, If your behind a router its likely that the test will be run against your router and not OnlineArmor.

Hope this helps..

 

ICMP type 3, 8 and 11 are important for a proper internet working
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_Control_Message_Protocol
if you work with ping and tracert you need also type 0

OA blocks some of them by default, eg cfosspeed cant proper work.

 

The WIN 7 firewall firewall for example allows inbound echo reply as one of its default rules.

The primary reason it is allowed is to prevent your previous Internet connections from "hanging" when the connection is terminated.

If you are really worried about it security wise, only allow it inbound from your router's gateway address.