Examine the software licensing agreement accompanying the security product you depend upon, and you'll find that the vendor who took your money is not responsible for its operation and/or performance.

It is not, and never was, my intention to embarrass or harass specific firewall vendors. My ShieldsUP! external security testing facility doesn't know or care which firewall you may or may not be using, and neither does LeakTest. All of my tests focus upon the technology of security. They don't play favorites. They are unbiased, and all firewall vendors are treated alike.

But . . .

No two firewalls are the same, but there is no way to know from the surface how they compare. Claims are just that. Users need to have the ability to test their systems and firewalls, both from the outside in (with ShieldsUP! and someday NanoProbe) and from the inside out (with LeakTest). Over time the user community and PC press need to develop a general awareness of which firewalls seem more secure and which seem to be less. But when pitted against vendors' massive marketing budgets, a general awareness of the truth would not be achieved by having me secretly whispering into the ears of those companies who were producing inferior firewalls. So I can't do that.

My tests have been, are, and will always be generic and unbiased pure technology. After that, together, we will let the chips fall where they may.