I was once good friends with someone and now they hate me and have threatened to ruin my comp. They have my IP. Is this possible? I have Norton Anti-Virus 2005 if that helps? Also, how can I pretect myself? Thanks.

GeForce FX 5500
PSU 250W

Install a router (it's like a hardware firewall), and back it up with a software firewall.

Transmitter 99X

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How would I do this?

Also, I have a CD with many other Norton things on it, like Norton Ghost and I think a firewall.

But right now, with only Norton 2005, is it possible for him to ruin my comp? Thanks

GeForce FX 5500
PSU 250W

If you have WinXP SP2 (with firewall on), all of Microsoft's other critical updates, and a virus scanner there is not much chance that they will be able to hack you.

If you are still paranoid and don't want to spend money on a hardware firewall, contact your friend's ISP and tell them you think they are hacking you.

I will install SP@ as I have not yet. Also, this friend is only in grade 9 and talks alot of BS so i dunno how true it could be. I will install the norton stuff too. Thanks.

So i am assuming that it is possible to hack into my comp with my IP?

GeForce FX 5500
PSU 250W

Most likely, your "friend" is full of it. A real hacker would have already done something by now. Wannabes only make empty threats. Nevertheless, it is still sound advise to have a firewall and / or router installed and keep your anti-virus definitions up to date. A default installation of XP attached to the Internet these days can easily get infected within a matter of minutes without proper protection, thanks to variants of Sasser and the like.

Thanks, he said it was just a warning and now we are talking again! now i have SP2, its firewall on, and norton 2005

GeForce FX 5500
PSU 250W

Man glitchman I guess you are part of the underworld for such a detailed explination of a fake hacker? Theres not alot you can do with an IP address to actually "hack" a computer.They can do some port scans and vulnerability scans to figure out weakpoints in your system but thats Security.Just basically get a firewall and dont open files from unknown sources.

31337

Thanks, he said it was just a warning and now we are talking again! now i have SP2, its firewall on, and norton 2005

lmao,,,,thats so funny after reading my way down the thread...made my day :-)

Any fool can make a rule and any fool will follow it

www.wankerdrivers.com

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Theres not alot you can do with an IP address to actually "hack" a computer.

Port scans are only the start of things, sort of like knocking on the door to see if anyone is home. Depending on their OS, there may be several things that can happen. Windows 2000 and XP in particular tend to have more open ports than most other versions of Windows. Ports 135, 139, and 445 can be especially vulnerable to attack. A brand new 2K or XP box connected to the Internet can be hit with Sasser without any user intervention whatsoever. So if that much can be done without user interaction, just think of what happens when there is a human on the other end.

I highly recommend going to grc.com and performing their online Shields Up! scan. A quick test of the common ports will tell you whether or not you have these ports vulnerable.

My intention is not to scare anyone, but to point out the reality of the way things are. Firewalls are more critical now than before, due to more discoveries in software vulnerabilities.