Block unauthorised access to your computer with Comodo Firewall

A firewall is an essential security tool that regulates traffic between your computer and the internet. This keeps hackers off your computer and can stop malicious software sending stolen information. Comodo Firewall is free to download and use, and offers several extra tools not found in the Windows Firewall.

Installation is straightforward. It asks for your email address and suggests installing GeekBuddy, a paid-for live chat service form Comodo. Neither of these options are manditory for installation, though.

There are three security levels to choose from. The base is just the firewall and then there are two levels of proactive protection that attempt to recognise suspicious behavour rather than waiting for threats to be identified.

It also offers to change Windows to use the DNS servers from Comodo rather than those provided by your Internet Service Provider. Using an alternative DNS can keep you more secure and improve performance. Comodo isn't the only company to do this – OpenDNS is one alternative. You can read our article on changing a router to use this service here.

The interface is simple to understand and use. The Summary screen shows a record of internet traffic along with how many times Comodo Firewall has blocked unauthorised traffic. There is also a bar chart showing traffic by application.

When an unrecognised program attempts to access the internet, Comodo will display a window with some information about what it is trying to do and for you to decide whether or not to give it permission. We felt it gave enough information without overwhelming us and appreciated the option to create a System Restore point before continuing.

Defense+ has it's own settings tab that can be used to mark files as trusted and view a list of unrecognised files. This page also has the settings for the Sandbox. This is a tool for running a file you are not sure whether to trust or not without giving it full access.