I am so ignorant to this so if someone could educate me on this matter. What's the purpose of a firewall when it cannot prevent you from being infected with viruses if there is no anti-virus software installed? Please explain... Hi all...

Firewall is supposed to monitor connections to the internet not scan an incoming connection for viruses. Firewalls also prevent malicious programs from transmitting private information to the internet. They can also prevent your computer from being compromised by hackers.

An anti-virus can scan files you download and does on-demand scans of all the files on your computer. Most can detect Trojan Horses, Worms, and other malware.

ok that makes sense. now i know. thanks a lot...