Intrusion Detection, Identity Protection

The Firewall Intrusion Detection menu controls a thin client function. When you click on this menu, a popup menu appears that asks if it is OK to kick off its thin client suite application. The Intrusion Detection app. simply watches outgoing programs and prompts (by default) you to allow them or not allow them access to the Internet. This isn't really as much "Intrusion Detection" as it is a software firewall like Win XP SP2's built-in one that caused many of my installation hassles.

It was entertaining to monitor how many programs reach out and touch the Internet... until about the 10th program. Figure 19 shows you the dialog to add or remove programs and to set permissions (allow or block) on those programs.

Figure 19: Firewall Intrusion Detection window

When you click on the Identity Protection menu you get an immediate prompt to start the thin client on the computer you are using. Figure 20 shows what the main screen and popup look like.

Figure 20: Identity Protection screen (click to enlarge)

After you enter the correct password, the Identity Protection settings window opens up. On the left side of Figure 21, you add files and folders of private data, while on the right side, you add web sites that can access the private data. It appears that there is only one degree of privacy (private or not private).

Figure 21: Identity Protection Settings (click to enlarge)

This feature is kind of odd, since a good deal of identify theft comes from phishing and pharming exploits rather than remote sites reaching out and sucking data off of users' computers. Like many other of the DSD-150's features, this one needs further work to really be worthy of its name.