ZyXEL Communications P-660HW-T - V2, User Manual

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P-660HW-T v2 User’s Guide
Chapter 9 Firewalls 139
• The LAN (Local Area Network) port attaches to a network of computers, which needs
security from the outside world. These computers will have access to Internet services
such as e-mail, FTP, and the World Wide Web. However, “inbound access” will not be
allowed unless you configure remote management or create a firewall rule to allow a
remote host to use a specific service.
9.3.1 Denial of Service Attacks
Figure 78 Firewall Application
9.4 Denial of Service
Denials of Service (DoS) attacks are aimed at devices and networks with a connection to the
Internet. Their goal is not to steal information, but to disable a device or network so users no
longer have access to network resources. The ZyXEL Device is pre-configured to
automatically detect and thwart all known DoS attacks.
9.4.1 Basics
Computers share information over the Internet using a common language called TCP/IP. TCP/
IP, in turn, is a set of application protocols that perform specific functions. An “extension
number”, called the "TCP port" or "UDP port" identifies these protocols, such as HTTP
(Web), FTP (File Transfer Protocol), POP3 (E-mail), etc. For example, Web traffic by default
uses TCP port 80.
When computers communicate on the Internet, they are using the client/server model, where
the server "listens" on a specific TCP/UDP port for information requests from remote client
computers on the network. For example, a Web server typically listens on port 80. Please note
that while a computer may be intended for use over a single port, such as Web on port 80,
other ports are also active. If the person configuring or managing the computer is not careful, a
hacker could attack it over an unprotected port.