Firewall vs. Antivirus

Main Difference

The main difference between firewall and antivirus is that in a system firewall controls the incoming network traffic and acts as a barrier against the system traffic means it suspects the flow of data coming from the internet to the system, whereas antivirus spots viruses and malicious files in the system and preserves the system against internal attacks.

Difference Between Firewall and Antivirus

Comparison Chart

Firewall vs. Antivirus

The firewall software controls the incoming network traffic and acts as a barrier against the system traffic. An antivirus spots viruses and malicious files in the system and preserves the system against internal attacks. The firewall suspects the flow of data coming from the internet to the system. The functioning of antivirus is scanning, malware spotting, and restricting malicious data from entering into the systems. The firewall keeps track of the traffic that is incoming and outgoing from the system. Antivirus checks and spots different vulnerable files and programs that are compromising its security by taking advantage.

The firewall also prevents troubling data from entering or leaving the network. Whenever a threat is identified, the antivirus applies different measures like permanent removal, fixing, internet traffic control, or additional scanning for the protection of the system. All data must pass through the firewall, and only authorized data should be allowed from entering the network. The firewall implements both hardware and software, whereas an antivirus is executed only on software.

Nowadays, firewall software is already in the routers, which keep the system safe from other networks. Antivirus blocks further threats and deletes the corrupted files, and also observes the traffic coming from the internet. Some limitations of firewall software are that it does not blocks the internal threats and not provides protection against suspicious attacks. The antivirus checking is not possible on read-only files. IP spoofing and routing attacks are the counter-attacks that are possible in the firewall, whereas in antivirus, there are no counter attacks.

What is Firewall?

In a system, firewall software controls the incoming network traffic and acts as a barrier against the system traffic means it suspects the flow of data coming from the internet to the system. It keeps track of the traffic that is incoming and outgoing from the system. The firewall also prevents troubling data from entering or leaving the network. Nowadays, this software is already in the routers, which keep the system safe from other networks. One of the standard examples of firewall is Windows Firewall in Windows 7. All data must pass through the firewall, and only authorized data should be allowed from entering the network. A firewall is executed on both hardware and software.

Types

• Network Layer Firewall: The network layer firewall works as a packet filter that examines the packets from entering and leaving the network. It also has predefined filtration rules, and on the bases of these rules, it accepts or rejects the packets.
• Application Layer Firewall: The application layer firewall only works for a particular application and implements a security system to avoid outcast traffic coming over the network.
• Circuit Layer Firewall: The circuit layer firewall is also called a proxy server. It only permits particular packets to pass over the network, whereas it bounds all the others completely. Moreover, it protects the system and conceals the actual IP address (machine code) from the internet.

Some limitations of firewall software are that it does not blocks the internal threats and not provides protection against suspicious attacks.

What is Antivirus?

An antivirus spots viruses and malicious files in the system and preserves the system against internal attacks. An antivirus provides a security system that protects our computers from the threats which are already in our systems. This software is a set of programs that are constructed to secure systems from different threats and viruses, e.g., Trojan horses, space-filler viruses, spyware, malware, etc. which can cause risk to your computer and data files in it. This security mechanism is often used in office PCs.

The functioning of antivirus is scanning, malware spotting, and restricting malicious data from entering into the systems. The emails which we receive are also not safe completely; some of them contain viruses attached to them. It checks and spots different vulnerable files and programs that are compromising its security by taking advantage. Whenever a threat is identified, the antivirus applies different measures like permanent removal, fixing, internet traffic control, or additional scanning for the protection of the system.

It blocks further threats and deletes the corrupted files and also observes the traffic coming from the internet. An antivirus is executed only on software. It concerns both internal and external threats. It is a stand-alone software that is also responsible for other software security. It works on the file level, which means it can scan the harmful programs. The antivirus performs these functions on the data, which includes identification, detection, and removal. The antivirus checking is not possible to read-only files.

Conclusion

Both are used for protection, but there is a significant difference between them. The firewall protects the computer from unauthorized access from entering the computer, whereas antivirus software detects and provides a security system that protects our computers from the threats which are already in our systems. Firewall software is implemented on both hardware and software, while antivirus only implements on the software.