PNetMon 3.1
NetMon is a personal network monitor that doesn't require a degree in IT to use. PNetMon enables you to see all network connections made by software on your PC in a compact and easy to read format.
Is PNetMon a security tool? Not really, but it could be used as a safety net. When your chosen security tools fail you and malware manages to get into your PC that malware will usually want to communicate with a remote host for instructions and/or to send your personal data. The payoff for the miscreants who distribute most malware is to either steal your information or take control of our computer to wreak havoc on specific internet targets, or both. Those objectives require it to communicate with malicious hosts and possibly with other sites that are targets of attack.
Today's malware has become increasingly sophisticated. Once it gets past your primary defenses it will hide it's presence so that it can remain on your PC to do its evil deeds for as long as possible. Many computers are infected for long periods of time without their owner's knowledge.
By knowing the normal pattern of network communications of your PC PNetMon may enable you to spot something that just doesn't look right. What's my computer doing talking to that unfamilar host in a distant location? With that lead and a little research you just might find that your computer is doing things that you didn't tell it to do.
A planned future enhancement is a watchlist of known malicious hosts. If your PC talks with any of those hosts an alert would be generated.
