(andPOP) - Product:
Little Snitch
Developer:
Objective Development
Price: $24.95(USD)
System Requirements: Mac OS X 10.2 or higher
Mac is issuing a salutation…Cancel or Allow?
I know what you’re thinking. Why would I want a piece of software that makes my Mac function like a PC running Vista? Isn’t Apple trying to show us how that is a bad feature? The quick answer is yes and no. Let me explain.
Statistically speaking, Windows has been more prone to security issues such as spyware, viruses and malware; amongst other security holes. The security issues have become significant, forcing Microsoft to implement a feature that basically monitors all incoming and outgoing connections into their newest operating system, Windows Vista. This will help the average user determine if something from the internet is trying to access their computer, or if their computer is trying to access the internet, without their knowledge.
So back to our question. Why would I want a piece of software like that for my Mac? Because if you’re like me, you need to be in control of anything you do. With Little Snitch installed, any network connection made by any application to the Internet is shown to you, allowing you to control whether it can pass through your computer or if it must be stopped in its tracks.
How It Works
Once Little Snitch is installed, it gets right to work. You will quickly notice this by the amount of pop-ups that begin to sprout up as you open applications that require an Internet connection. You may even begin to wonder why some applications are trying to connect to the Internet, but aren’t necessarily Internet applications. This is known as “phoning home” and it’s a way for software developers to protect their intellectual property by verifying your registration data on your computer, to records somewhere on the Internet.
Little Snitch works alongside your computer. As new programs attempt to make connections, you’ll be presented with a dialog with several options. You can allow or deny a connection once, until a program quits or forever. In addition, you can set a condition based on the connections port, server address, both or any connection. For example, Apple’s software update will try to connect to Apple’s servers to check for new updates. Little Snitch will see this and then ask you how you would like to proceed.
Generally, it may be a good idea to allow this connection forever on any port. However, it is very possible that this program may make other connections that we may not want, so we’d select to allow forever with the condition as same server and port. This way, if the program tries to connect elsewhere, Little Snitch will notify and ask us again what we’d like to do.
Little Snitch also provides an easy to use administrative interface available from within the system preferences window. There, you can manage and/or setup your rules before running applications. Little Snitch already includes several preinstalled rules to allow for basic local network connectivity and web surfing, which allows for a much smoother setup for beginners.
The interface does need a little bit of work. Some better options to help you easily set the permissions for widgets is defiantly needed. If you find all the pop-ups annoying through average use, just wait till you open Dashboard with 20 widgets all trying to connect to the internet. A widget manager would be a great addition to the net version of Little Snitch.
Final Word
In today’s paranoid world, Little Snitch goes that extra mile to make you feel more comfortable doing your everyday tasks. While the Mac is generally a safe platform, with Little Snitch installed, you’ll never have to peek over your shoulder to see if someone’s watching.
