Having a home computer or even in a commercial or corporate setting where computers are heavily used, having a firewall as a means of security and protection is a necessity in the online world of today. Because the use of the Internet is common, and a daily occurrence, you need to have the right firewall in place to help keep others out of your internal network as hackers and those seeking to do harm to your business or computer can get in through ports and access points which have not been secured. Simply connecting to the Internet opens up your network to others, though using a firewall keeps others away as it adds a layer of security to force others out and only allow access to those designated to do so. A firewall needs to be encrypted and have multiple layers of security and verification in order for it to work effectively at all times. Even if you have a firewall in place, you need to have it routinely tested and upgraded to make sure the most current security threats in existence cannot get through to your network and thus cause harm and disrupt business or computer operations for users and administrators.