Company | Product (full review) | Rating | Price | Pros | Cons |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Apple | Mac OS X Firewall | free (A) | Already part of Mac OS; stealth mode and logging tools; can block UDP traffic. | Advanced configuration requires Terminal; reveals OS; logs could confuse network newbies | |
Brian Hill | Flying Buttress 1.4 | $25 | Excellent front end to OS X’s built-in firewall; GUI access to features otherwise available through Terminal; syntax checker. | Limited support; poor documentation; some configuration requires advanced knowledge; reveals OS. | |
Intego | NetBarrier X4 | $70 | Intrusion detection; anti-spyware tools; cookie management; monitoring tools; simple setup. | Default configurations are either too permissive or too restrictive; customized configuration requires some knowledge of network security. | |
Open Door Networks | DoorStop X Security Suite | $80 | Excellent documentation; provides detailed information about logs and security instruction; excellent support. | Default settings too stringent; doesn’t warn against accidentally locking down services that you might need. | |
Sustainable Softworks | IPNetSentry X 1.3.1 | $60 | Intrusion detection; highly configurable; excellent logging and bandwidth utilization controls. | Requires significant technical knowledge to manage correctly. | |
Symantec | Norton Personal Firewall 3.0.3 | $50 | Simple setup and configuration; recognizes applications that require network access; easy to add new port or service security. | Stealth mode reveals OS. |